Endgame
by LGP
Summary: We all know Sydrian is Endgame. This is a story about the difficult choices you have to make for love, how to make up for past mistakes, and how to finally have a happy ending. It's sweet, it's sad, it's happy, it's fluffy, and it's got lots of Sydrian, and a little action here and there. I dunno how much longer it'll be but not THAT much longer.
1. Between Sleep and Wakefulness

**A/N:**

_So, this story sprang out of my head almost fully formed while I was washing dishes one day recently. It's not a sequel to, or even in the same universe as, my other, sort of epic fic (_The Door in the Tree_, which is over in the VA section). I still haven't read _The Golden Lily_ or any of the stuff that's been released from _The Indigo Spell_ – I want to finish my own story first – but I've been spoilered a bit here and there and I know more or less how things stand between Sydney and Adrian. _

_This story takes place about ten years in the future, as you'll see. I think it's basically consistent with what happened in TGL and may even make sense as happening after TIS, depending on exactly how things pan out in that book. In any case, it's going to be much, much, much shorter than my other story – only 21 chapters or so – and quite different (not much magic or fantasy stuff, to be specific). _

_Fair warning: This starts off as a pretty sad story. It's hard not to see sad things in the future for Sydney and Adrian, sometimes. But give it a chance. To me, at least, the story feels satisfying realistic and joyful, especially by the end. There are tons of sweet scenes to come. I hope you like it!_

_I ABSOLUTELY LOVE REVIEWS. The best reviews are honest and specific.  
_

_If you're concerned, I'm not abandoning _The Door in the Tree_! I'm going to finish that story if it kills me. And if you haven't been reading it, give it a try. It's really long, but you can take your time. I'll get back to updating it when I'm done with this story.  
_

* * *

**Endgame**

**Chapter 1: Between Sleep and Wakefulness**

A small, insistent voice dragged me from sleep.

For a fraction of a second, I found myself angry at the little voice. I was having the most wonderful dream and I didn't want to wake up. It was the only reason I had napped in the first place – I was trying to get back to that wonderful dream I'd been having a lot lately. But the voice spoke again, and the beginnings of my anger melted away.

"Mommy?" the voice said. "I'm sorry to wake you up. I know you like to sleep sometimes. But Dad asked me to."

I sat up and opened my eyes. Violet was staring at me, her amber brown eyes calm and unblinking. She had begun to sound so put-together, so much older than her six years. I reached out to smooth her blonde mop of hair.

"No need to say sorry, honey," I told her, forcing myself to smile. "It's ok. What does your father want?"

"Dinner," she said simply. "Amy offered to try to make something, but Dad said she's still too young to cook."

"Nine years old _is_ too young to make a whole dinner," I agreed. "Maybe in two or three years." I stood up and stretched, then bent over to give Violet a hug. "I love you," I said, and she smiled. "Do you want to help me make dinner?" She nodded and smiled more broadly.

We made our way downstairs and to the kitchen, Violet holding my hand tightly. As usual, the enormous house was immaculate, and our footsteps echoed a little in the grand hallways. I had fallen asleep right after my post-work shower, and from the looks of it, Violet and Amy had taken care of their after-school snack dishes themselves. I had the best two daughters in the world, and I told them that every chance I got. I did everything in my power to raise a shield of love and protection around them.

I began preparing the dinner, inventing small tasks that Violet could do to help. She was very bright, and followed directions well, but couldn't exactly be trusted with knives yet. As we worked, Amy came in from the playroom and offered to help, too. Well, she claimed to be helping; what she really was doing was filling me in on her day as I chopped and measured. Her voice was a chipper monolog that rose over the sound of the television coming from the living room.

"... And we did harmonicas in music class," Amy said. "And I played 'Ode to Joy', sort of. Oh, and I got 90% on my math quiz, and we had a race in gym class and I won, I even beat the boys, and Nick Henson said it was only because I'm the oldest and tallest girl in third grade, because of the age cut-off thing, I just laughed at him, 'cause he's so dumb, and Rachel Myer says he likes me, and ewwww!"

"Ewww, indeed," I said, adding spices to the marinade. I had no idea who Nick Henson was, but I had no doubt he had a crush on Amy. She was gorgeous, tall and strong for her age, with bright green eyes and thick blonde hair. And to top it off, she was smart as a whip.

"I know, right?" she said. "I _hate_ boys. And oh, also, I handed in my diorama about the solar system today, and I think it's the best in the class, 'cuz Mrs. Hoovey says I can bring Yertle home for the weekend if you say it's ok..."

"I'm so proud of you, honey," I said. "But you'll have to ask your father if it's ok with him before you bring home a turtle for a visit."

"Oh," Amy said, sadly, and fell silent. She knew, as well as I did, that her father wasn't likely to say yes to the idea of having the classroom turtle visiting for the weekend. It broke my heart that she had so little hope in her heart, even about something so small, and it angered me that I couldn't stand up for her. But there was no arguing with my husband. Rick had his own ideas about the world, and one of them was that man was head of the household, just as God is the head of the church. I had known that about him when I married him, of course. I just didn't know that it would turn out like this.

I looked away from Amy and caught a glimpse of myself in my reflection in the window. The delicate tattoo of a golden lily on my cheek hadn't been touched up in years, and it was now almost completely invisible. I traced a finger over where it had been, thinking about what it had once meant to me, and then turned my attention back to the potatoes I was chopping. Whatever else I might be, I was still a wife and mother, and there were potatoes to be chopped.

The rest of the meal was prepared in relative quiet, now that the air had gone out of Amy's balloon. We put together the meal in companionable silence, just a simple roast with potatoes and carrots, the kind of thing that Rick liked so we all ate. When dinner was on the table, I called Rick into the kitchen. I heard the TV switch off and then he appeared in the doorway, a good looking man, over six feet tall, slender but muscular, with pale green eyes and sandy brown hair. "Smells great, Sydney," he said.

He pulled my chair out for me and I sat down. Then he picked Violet up and swung her around affectionately and with ease. He was strong, physically at least. I had liked that when we first got married. He had seemed like someone you could trust to take care of you. He brought Violet over to the tall shelf where we kept the soda so that she could grab two cans of diet cola for "the grownups," while Amy poured two glasses of milk, one for herself and one for her little sister. Once the beverages were all on the table, they sat down and Rick said grace.

"How was school, sweetheart?" Rick asked Amy, as I began dishing out the food.

"Good," she said, choosing her words with care. "I got a good grade on my math test."

"A hundred?" he prompted.

"A 90."

"Why not a hundred?"

"There were only ten questions," she said. "I missed one."

"Next time, I want to hear that you got a hundred," Rick said.

"I was tied for the best grade in the class," Amy said, quietly, but with a slight whine to her voice. I couldn't blame her.

"Just because the rest of your class is a group of dunces doesn't excuse you from putting the work in," Rick said. "You should measure your work against what you're capable of and what you want to achieve, not against the mediocrity of others."

"Yes, Dad," Amy said. "Um, Dad? You know how we have a turtle in class?"

"Sure," Rick said. I doubt he did know, but he was never going to admit that.

"Her name is Yertle and she's real cute and she's greenish brown and she eats lettuce and stuff. She's really cool."

"That's nice," Rick said.

"Well," Amy said, and took a deep breath. "Mrs. Hoovey says I can take her home for the weekend. Can I?"

"It's a big honor, Rick," I said. "Mrs. Hoovey lets the best student of the week take Yertle home and it would mean a lot to Amy." I crossed my fingers under the table.

Amy said, "I'd take care of her and give her lettuce and she'd stay in her cage and wouldn't bother anyone. And I want to be a veterinarian when I grow up so this will be good practice..."

"Turtles carry disease," Rick said. "Salmonella, E. coli, who knows what else. Besides, reptiles can't feel or display love, Amy. There's no reason to have one in the house."

Violet muttered something and Amy giggled very quietly. This was their favorite game. Violet had a sharp, sarcastic sense of humor, unusual in such a young child, and Amy's young ears could pick up on Violet's muttered jokes when no one else could. In this case, I suspected that Violet was making a comparison between reptiles and her father that wouldn't be particularly flattering to Rick. Luckily, Rick didn't hear the comment, or even notice that other people weren't hanging on his every word.

"Tell your teacher that you're very flattered that she chose you for the job," he continued. "But tell her that you'll have to decline for health and safety reasons."

Amy rolled her eyes. "I'm not going to say that, Dad. I'll just say that you won't let me."

"Do not roll your eyes at me, young lady," Rick said, his voice suddenly dangerously soft. "Just because you're upset that you can't bring that little disease machine home is no reason to lose respect for your parents. You will finish your dinner quickly and then go up to your room for the rest of the night."

"Should I help with the dishes first?" Amy asked. There was no insolence to her tone, than God.

"Your mother and sister can take care of them," Rick said. "And I'll expect you to write a hundred words on the meaning of respect and give them to me in the morning."

"Yes, sir," Amy said. I saw her withdraw into herself. Moments before, she'd been a happy girl who had had a great day at school and been offered a reward. Now she was a sad little girl being punished. And all she had wanted was the respect and love of a father. I tried to catch her eye, but her gaze was fixed at a point in the middle distance. I knew that look. I had worn it a lot of my own life.

"And you, Violet?" Rick asked, his voice almost affectionate. "Did _you_ have a good day?"

"Yes, sir," Violet said, quietly, and offered no details. She was probably afraid of accidentally stepping on a verbal landmine.

"Good," Rick said. "Working hard?"

"Yes, sir," she said. She looked at me. I gave an almost imperceptible shake of the head. _Don't elaborate_. "I am working hard," she added.

"Good, good," Rick said.

"And you?" I asked. "How was your day?"

"Excellent," Rick said. "We're getting custody for sure. Wear 'em down, just like I always say. Wear 'em down."

Rick was a high-powered divorce attorney who specialized in representing fathers who wanted custody of their children. All over the country, children were being denied even occasional visitation with their mothers, because of Rick. I knew that we lived well because of his work and the fat paychecks he took home, but it turned my stomach nonetheless.

At least he was on a roll now. Once he started talking about his cases, he didn't stop. He babbled about his day for most of the rest of the meal, leaving the rest of us to nod and agree while we ate. Naturally, the subject of my day never came up. We sort of pretended that I didn't really work at the garage. Rick didn't want me working outside the home – though he'd been glad enough to have the money my translating work brought in, when he was in law school – but I managed to talk him into letting me get a part-time position as a mechanic at a local garage. It was within walking distance from our house, so I saved wear and tear on our brand new SUV. I brought in extra income for the family, and I "got my ya-yas out," as Rick put it. We just never discussed it. I wore gloves while I worked and showered thoroughly to make sure there were no visible or olfactory clues to remind him of my job. And Rick no longer gave me any money from his (much more substantial) paycheck to pay for groceries. Still, it was worth it. Working at the garage was about all I had now. That, and church, of course. And my girls. Always, and forever, my girls.

When the meal was over, Rick went into the living room to watch TV, while Amy trudged sadly upstairs to write her essay, leaving Violet and me to clean up, which we did, singing a little song together as we worked. When Violet and I were finished, she surprised me by putting the kettle on. "For Aim-Aim," she whispered, very quietly.

"Good idea," I whispered back, and gave her a squeeze. "Go on and watch TV with your dad, ok?"

She nodded and disappeared into the living room. I found the cookies where I'd hidden them behind the rice crackers, and pulled the cocoa mix out from behind the spices. I mixed up the cocoa, then tiptoed up the stairs with the treats.

"Amy," I whispered, in a tiny voice from outside her door. She opened the door very quietly – she was light on her feet – and smiled when she saw the mug of cocoa. I tiptoed inside and she closed the door behind me.

"How is the paper going?" I asked, in a very low voice.

"The one for Dad? I'm halfway done." She handed me a piece of loose-leaf paper and I read what she'd written so far.

_Respetc is something that dotters should have for fathers. I didnt' show respetc when I said that I wooldnt' tell my teecher that Yertle was full of diseez even thouh I thawght I wouldn't show respetc to the teecher if I said her tertle was full of diseez._

I smiled. Spelling was not Amy's strong suit, and she still hadn't learned how to grovel to Rick – something I couldn't help but be glad about. "That's good," I said quietly. "But we'll have to take out that last part. And we'll fix the spelling."

"When I grow up, I'm going to be president and ban spelling," Amy said.

"We need good spelling to tell words apart," I said, still smiling. "Otherwise we can't tell the kind of 'bare' that means 'naked' from the kind of 'bear' you have to run away from. But if you run for president, I'll vote for you for sure, and cheer the loudest when you win."

I helped her look up the words in a spell checker, and dictated a few sentences to help fill the word requirement. After the essay for Rick was done, I checked over Amy's other homework for school while she sipped the cocoa and ate the cookie. I helped her make a few corrections, then made sure she understood the concepts with a few quick side examples. I always enjoyed helping Amy with her homework, because she was so bright and interested in almost everything. I knew I could probably home-school her with ease, but I wanted her, and Violet, to attend regular school. I wanted them to have the most normal life they could have.

When we were done and her school books were all packed up for school in the morning, Amy thanked me, then whispered, "Mom?" She paused for a long moment before she asked me, "Does Dad... hate me?"

I didn't want her to see the tears that threatened in my eyes, so I pulled her close to me in a tight hug. I didn't know what to say. Rick had been crazy about Amy when she was born, and every day had found a feature in her face or body that reminded him of a family member or himself. But as she'd grown up and shown more independence every day, he'd become tired of her, and all that affection had seemed to sour. I tried to think of an answer for her that wouldn't be a lie but would still make her feel better. Finally, I just whispered, "Don't be sad. He hates almost everyone."

"Even Violet?" she asked, pulling away from me so she could watch my face as I answered.

"Maybe not Violet," I said. "But Violet is better at hiding her feelings from him. She sort of tricks him, you know?"

"Yeah," Amy said. "She does." She paused to consider that, then asked me a question that I wasn't expecting. "Does he... hate you?"

I couldn't lie to Amy, not after everything. "I think so," I whispered.

"_I_ don't hate you," Amy said. "You're kind of cool, for like, a mom." She said it as if that settled matters. In a lot of ways, it did.

"I don't hate you, either," I said, making sure not to let tears rise up to choke my voice. "I better go."

Unexpectedly, Amy threw her arms around me. "Don't go downstairs," she said. "Stay here with me."

"I can't," I whispered. "He'll notice if I'm here too long. But I love you, honey, and I'll be upstairs again soon to get you ready for bed."

She gave me an injured look and went to sit down at her desk. "Ok," she said, opening a book. "Bye, then."

I felt awful, but there was nothing I could do. I gave her a kiss on the top of her head, and then went back downstairs. In the living room, Rick was watching another cop show, as usual. Violet was sitting on the floor near his feet, reading a book. I could tell from where I stood that it was a Harry Potter book, but wrapped in a dust jacket from a different book. Rick thought the Harry Potter series encouraged devil worship and wouldn't let the girls read it, but they had both found ways around that. The brazen act of reading the book just inches from Rick amazed me. Violet was so much like me sometimes that it almost scared me. Her eyes sparkled when she looked up and saw me. We both knew what she was doing, and we both loved it.

"Have you finished your homework?" I asked Violet, knowing she had.

"Yes, Mommy," she said. "Can you check it for me?"

"I'd love to," I said.

Violet picked up her school bag and followed me into the kitchen, Rick barely noticing our exit. Once we'd checked over Violet's homework in the cozy warm room – I had insisted on painting it yellow, and Rick hadn't bothered to fight me on it – she and I played a few games of cat's cradle before it was time for bed.

Over the next hour or so, I sat with each of my daughters – first Violet, then Amy – reading to them, tucking them in, and hearing their prayers. Amy was getting too old to be read to, so we took turns reading out loud from her library book. I think she just liked spending the time with me. I hoped she wouldn't outgrow it any time soon.

When the girls were both in bed, I lay down in my own bed with a book. For a short while, I was pulled into another world, a different one, where love lasted forever and all sacrifices were worth it. Then the door opened and my husband walked in, and I put the book back in the bedside table drawer.

I knew what was coming as soon as he went into the master bathroom to brush his teeth. It was going to be a sex night, of course. Exercising control over someone else, even a powerless 9-year-old, seemed to turn Rick on. Or maybe it'd been a really violent episode of _CSI: Tacoma_ or whatever it was he was watching. Either way... lucky me. When Rick came back in, I let him climb on top of me and begin fumbling with my clothes. It was better not to fight him on it. He would argue marital needs and quote scripture and in the end, I'd have to give in, or face weeks of nastiness. And if I just pretended hard enough, it even felt sort of nice, sometimes.

Tonight wasn't one of those nights, though. It seemed somehow worse to have him huffing and puffing on me when I'd experienced such lightness and joy in my dream that afternoon.

When Rick let out a sort of snort and rolled back onto his own side, I got up to go to the bathroom. I started the water running and very quietly opened the medicine cabinet. There, hidden in a box of tampons, was a small bottle of white powder, an alchemist concoction that prevented conception. I put a small spoonful in a Dixie cup and mixed it with water, then drank it down. I loved my daughters, but I would be damned if I brought another child into this family.

When I was done, I went back out into the room. Rick was already asleep and snoring. I lay down on my side, but the mattress was sagging in the middle and I found myself rolling towards the center of the bed, just a little. I closed my eyes, thinking of the dream again. I had been so happy for a moment. What _was_ it I had been dreaming of? It had felt familiar. It had felt like... Like...

It felt like _this_.

The dream came back to me before I quite knew I was asleep. It wasn't one of those cinematic dreams, those ones in which a story unfolds in front of you, complete with characters and plots. This was one of those tie-dye swirl dreams – just a blur of feelings and images. The only thing clear to me was the sense of being loved, and held, and adored. Someone was with me, someone warm to the touch, someone who seemed to delight in me as much as I delighted in him. I found his lips, I was kissing him, he was kissing me, his hands were warm and strong, his scent was familiar, his touch was gentle... This was the dream I had been dreaming for months, but I was hardly aware of that. I just relaxed into complete happiness. I murmured a name, and heard my name in return. This was bliss. I knew, at some level, that this was a dream, and I hoped I would never wake up. It'd be worth it, to stay here with the man I loved.

I pulled one of his hands upwards and placed it on my breast. I put my hands on his waist, then moved them lower. If this was a dream, I had nothing to lose. With this man, I wanted a lot more than kissing, and as the tone of the dream shifted, became steadily more erotic, I felt his touch grow more intense, more focused. But then suddenly, he pulled away from me. The swirling feeling began to resolve into clarity. I reached out for him, trying to stay in the dream, and found myself looking into the wonderful, familiar green eyes of Adrian Ivashkov.


	2. The Third Option

_I ABSOLUTELY LOVE REVIEWS. :)  
_

**Chapter 2: The Third Option  
**

"Hi, Sydney," Adrian said. He was still just a few inches away from me, and he looked at me casually, as if there were nothing strange about what was going on. "Sorry to take you out of true dream space like that," he said. "But I just couldn't go through with it."

I had so many things to say in response to this statement that they all got stuck in my mouth, like too many people trying to go through a doorway all at once. I stared at him with a mixture of anger, joy, confusion, and regret. Finally, I managed to sputter, "What are you doing here?"

"Nice to see you too," he said, smiling. "Here. If we're going to talk, we might as well talk someplace a little more comfortable than the opening credits of _The Twilight Zone_." The swirling mist that surrounded us resolved into a pleasant room with a couch, some chairs, and a coffee table. Adrian sat down on the couch and patted the space next to him, but I sat down on a chair a few feet away. I knew I couldn't trust myself to sit that close to him. He looked every bit as gorgeous as he had the last night I'd seen him, before I'd left Palm Springs forever. His hair was now styled much more neatly, but otherwise, he had barely changed. I felt a little shy, worried that he wouldn't find me attractive anymore, then chided myself for vanity.

"This is a spirit dream, right?" I asked.

"Yes," he said, and waited for me to continue.

"If this is a spirit dream, what was... _that_, before?"

"That was a _real_ dream," Adrian said. "It's hard to explain, and it doesn't really matter." He edged down on the sofa to be closer to me. "I've missed you so much, Sydney. It's been almost ten years."

"It'll be ten years in January," I answered automatically.

"Yeah, exactly," he said. "So how _are_ you?"

"I'm great," I said, warily. "Explain the dream thing. What was that?"

"Ok, ok, I'll explain," Adrian said, rolling his eyes a little, then paused as if choosing his words. "Ok, see, I've gotten better at sneaking into people's dreams and seeing what goes on there. It's different from the other dream walking I do, when I sort of create a shared dream for me and my target. When I _sneak_ in, I can just sort of join the real dream in progress, no matter how weird or confusing it is. But it's kind of invasive to dream-sneak, so I don't do it much, and I wouldn't do it to you, except that..."

"Except that?" I prompted when he trailed off.

"It's just that I happened to stumble on your dreams a few months ago. I hadn't really meant to do it. I was just lying down for a little nap at 2 am and I was thinking of you and... it just happened. I wandered into your dream and found you dreaming of me. So I sort of … took over the Adrian role in your dream."

"A few months ago?" I repeated. "So you've done this more than once?"

"A few times," he said.

"How many is a few?"

"Like.. five or six... dozen," Adrian said, and grinned. "Like... several times a week, for a few months now. You dream about me a _lot_, Sage."

"That's irrelevant," I said, though mentally, I was checking this information against my own experience. It all fit... My constant desire to nap, the joy and lightness it brought... I couldn't think about this now. I had to maintain a hard line against Adrian or all this struggle would be for nothing. "And I've had enough now," I said. "You've invaded my mind, and you used magic to do it. Plus, you ignored my direct request. I specifically asked you to leave me alone. I said _no dreams_."

"Oh, I remember that," Adrian said, ruefully. "I practically memorized that text message you sent me, the night you snuck out of Palm Springs like a thief."

"You make it sound so sordid," I said. "It's not like I just left without warning. I withdrew from Amberwood, I said goodbye to everyone, then I went to you to say goodbye..."

"Oh, I remember that, too," Adrian said, a slight note of anger in his voice. "I remember that you came to say goodbye. Funny thing is, you never actually _said_ goodbye."

"I tried to," I said, and we both heard the catch in my voice. "I really did..."

"Hey," he said, in a much softer tone. "It's ok. It's a long time ago now. Let's not talk about it. We're here together now. Tell me how things are for you."

"I can't do this," I said. "I can't have a casual conversation with you. Some things have changed, but you're still a Moroi, and I'm still human."

"And you're still completely breathtaking," he said. He looked at me with that same look he used to give me, years and years ago. "In fact," he added, "I think you may have gotten even more beautiful. How did you do that, Sage?"

"My last name isn't Sage anymore," I said, though the compliment made my head swim. "I got married."

Adrian looked down at his hands. "I'd heard that," he said. "But I liked Sage as a name for you. You're so wise, like... sagacious." He pronounced the word carefully. "And I've heard of people burning the plant called sage to cleanse the bad energy from a room. That's just what you do. You make everything better."

"If I have to be set on fire for that to work, count me out," I said.

He smiled a little at that, then got up and knelt by my chair and then took my hand in his. "You shine so brightly anyway," he said. "Brighter than the sun, remember?" He stroked my hand with his thumb.

I knew I should push him away, but it had been a long time since anyone over the age of ten had shown me any kind of affection, and I craved his touch. "Why are you here?" I asked him. "What do you want, after all this time?"

He shrugged. "Same thing I ever wanted. To see you, be near you, that kind of thing." Our eyes met, and he smiled sadly. "I never stopped loving you, Sydney," he said. "Not for a minute." He took my hand up to his lips and kissed it.

"For ten years?" I said, in a hushed voice. My hand tingled where his lips had brushed my skin.

"Yeah," he said. "It's been a lot of minutes." He leaned closer to me, aiming to kiss my lips, but I stood up and took a few steps away.

"And you came sneaking into my dreams to... what?" I said, putting my hands on my hips. "To make out with me?"

"Hey, don't act so surprised," he said, standing up as well. "First off, come on, I'm Adrian Ivashkov. Making out is sort of what I _do_." He wiggled his eyebrows. "Second, you were there. You were whispering my name. You knew it was me and you _liked_ it."

"That's different," I said, feeling a blush rise to my cheeks. "It was a dream. I didn't know it was _really_ you."

"Why should it make a difference?" Adrian asked.

"It just does!" I said. "You were taking advantage of me!"

"We were just cuddling and kissing," Adrian said. "When you started to put your hands down my pants, I knew it was time for a bit of a conference."

I let out an exasperated sigh. I had only been around Adrian for a few minutes, but he was already completely aggravating. "I was dreaming," I said. "It didn't mean what you think it does. I'm a married woman, a married _human_ woman, and you're a Moroi, and this has to stop right now."

"I notice you don't say 'happily married,'" Adrian commented, calmly. "Isn't that the phrase people say?" He imitated a woman's voice. " 'But I'm a happily married woman!' That's what they always used to say, right before they threw their panties at me." He grinned.

"Is this your method of flirting?" I asked. "Because it isn't really working–"

"Are you happy?" Adrian asked, interrupting me. "Do you love your husband?" His tone had changed from light and airy to focused and concerned in a matter of seconds. Typical Adrian.

"Does it make a difference?" I asked. "Married is married."

"Tell me that your marriage is happy," he said.

"Why does it matter?" I asked.

"It matters to me," he persisted. "Tell me you really love your husband and I'll stop. I'll leave you alone."

"He's my husband," I said. "What do you think?"

"I want you to say it," he said. "Do you love him?" I stayed silent, and he took my hand again. "Does he make you happy? Are you glad you're married? Is it what you always wanted?"

"No," I snapped. "I can barely stand to be in the same room as him." There was a long silence as we both took in what I had just said, and I looked down at the floor. "It's what I always wanted to avoid," I said, in a low whisper.

"Does he... hit you?" Adrian asked, his voice dropping about an octave. "If he's laid a finger on you, I'll... I'll..."

"He doesn't hit me," I said. "Besides, what would you do about it?"

"I don't know," Adrian said. "_Something_."

"Like what?" I asked.

He squeezed my hand. "I could always just hand him over to Abe Mazur," he said. "Or sic Rose or Belikov on him. They ask about you, you know," he added. "They seem to think that I must be in contact with you, no matter what I say."

I smiled, picturing Rose and my other friends – though "friend" might be the wrong word for Abe Mazur. "How is everyone?" I asked.

"Oh, you want to know how _they_ are," Adrian said, pouting. "But not me." I raised an eyebrow and waited. He rolled his eyes. "Rose and Belikov got married," he said. "Like, nine years ago. She's a Belikov now, too. Or rather, a Belikova. They're happy, happy, blah blah blah. They had a couple kids – sperm donation, if you're wondering, and not from me, if you're wondering. Though I did _offer_." He made a face. "They could have at least _considered_ it. I have excellent genetic stock."

I couldn't help but smile at the image of Rose and Dimitri confronted with Adrian's offer of a sperm donation. He probably would have been happy to deliver it directly to Rose's cervix, I thought, then felt a wave of jealousy run through me, a feeling like having a grocery cart run directly into your stomach. I took a deep, steadying breath, then asked, "Boys or girls?"

"Two boys," Adrian said. "Cole and Zach." He looked up at me suddenly. "Do you have kids?" he asked.

"Two girls," I said. "Amy is in third grade and Violet's in first."

"Wow," he said, shaking his head in disbelief. "Do they look like you, or like their father?"

"Violet looks a lot like me," I said. "Amy looks a lot like her father. But they're both great in school and just..." I shook my head.

"They sound great," Adrian said. "Rose's kids would beat you senseless as soon as look at you, and they're only seven or eight."

I smiled. "Amy wants to take karate, but Rick won't let her," I said. "She says she wants to be a ninja when she grows up. Among other things, of course."

Adrian smiled too. "Take the kid to the karate lessons," he said. "It can be your little secret."

"We already have enough little secrets," I said, and hurried to add, "I sneak her cocoa when she's being punished for no reason. Things like that."

"Sounds like you're doing the best you can," Adrian said.

"I am," I said.

"You fight back plenty," he added, and smiled wistfully.

"I have to," I said. "My daughters are... They're the reason I live."

"Hmm," Adrian said, and I heard the deep concern in his voice as he went on. "It sounds like they're great kids, and I'm glad that you have that in your life. But you need more reasons to live. You know? You need things just for yourself." He sighed. "Your aura is... different than when I last saw you. You were under stress then, too, but this is..." He shook his head."What's wrong? You said he doesn't hit you, but what _does_ he do?"

I closed my eyes. I had been keeping this in for so long. Something about Adrian asking me just opened all the floodgates. When I finally spoke, there was no hiding the tears in my voice. "He criticizes," I whispered. "My hair, my clothes, my body. He insinuates. He nags. He makes unilateral decisions, and claims that it's 'our plan.' He forgets things that really happened, and remembers things that never happened. Somehow, I'm always the villain. I'm unfeminine for liking to fix cars. I'm not natural for knowing as much as I do. If I suggest that I should have a voice in the raising of our children, I'm going against God and the church. If I don't give enough input into our children's lives, I'm unnatural and lacking in maternal instincts. He sets me up for failure, and then enjoys berating me when I fail." I opened my eyes and looked into Adrian's thoughtful face.

"Why don't you just leave him?" he asked. "Get a divorce or whatever?"

"Rick would never let me keep the girls," I said. "He's a divorce lawyer. It's what he does best. He'd get sole custody. I've heard him talk about how he does it. He paints the wife as mentally unstable, or sometimes even makes up stories about the wife molesting the kids."

"Oh, God," Adrian said. "That's disgusting."

"Then it's just a war of attrition," I said. "The side with less money loses. In this case, it'd be me."

"If it's money you need," Adrian said, "I have plenty now. My trust fund defaulted to me when I turned 30. I'll give you whatever you want. No strings, seriously."

"Thanks," I said, awkwardly. "But I couldn't take money from you. Besides, it wouldn't help. The courts almost always award custody to men when they sue for it. Some sort of weird built-in bias in the system. A woman who wants her children is just normal, but a man who wants them, wow! What a great father!" I couldn't keep the bitterness from my voice. "I'd get skewered for missing a few PTA meetings, while he'd get applauded for the one time he went to Amy's dance recital."

"That's fucked up," Adrian said.

"That's life," I said.

"Ok," he said. "So, divorce won't work. So just run. Hide."

I shook my head. "Wouldn't work. He'd hunt me to the ends of the earth to get the girls back. He's not an alchemist, but he's the son of an alchemist, and he's tight with the organization. They'd help him find us, and he'd take Amy and Violet." I paused. "The weird thing is, I'm not even sure he loves them. Well, he might love Violet. I'm not sure about that. I just know he wouldn't let them go. It would be too much for his ego."

"So you're just going to stay with him?"

"Until Violet turns 18," I said. "It's just another 11 and a half years."

Adrian let out a weird choked laugh. "Not that you're counting," he said.

"Right," I said. "And until then, I just have to nod and smile and do everything I can do to protect them. Do you know, I got the school to send all communications to the place where I work, so that I could intercept anything pertaining to 'objectionable' content before it got to Rick? It's Halloween in a week or two and he wouldn't want them marching in the Halloween parade at school. Things like that. It's awful."

"Was he like that when you married him?" Adrian asked.

"I didn't know him that well," I answered, choosing my words carefully. This was a tricky subject.

"Why did you marry him?"

"I can't talk about this with you," I answered. "I... was trying to do the right thing."

"For the alchemists?" he asked, and then looked more carefully at my cheek. "Wait, your tattoo is all faded. Are you still even with the alchemists?"

"I left active service when Violet was about a year old," I said. "It's um, it's a long story." I looked down at my hands. I didn't want to talk about what had happened.

"But you gave up everything to be an alchemist!" Adrian exploded. "You said you couldn't be with _me_ because of them!"

"I can't be with you because it's _wrong_," I said. "Even if I'm not an alchemist, I'm still in the church, and I still have my faith. Besides, Rick is popular in the church. Marrying him smoothed everything over. My family has accepted me again, completely. Even Zoe talks to me again. She's the alchemist in the family, now."

"So, does that make you happy?" Adrian asked. There was a leading note to his voice, as if he expected me to agree with him, to say that I _was_ happy. "You've got family approval, church approval, two great daughters..."

I wanted to lie, to say that I was fine, but there was no point. "You can see my aura," I said. "You know how I am."

"You're right," he said, his eyes growing unfocused for a moment. "Your aura is as tarnished as my aunt's old silverware." Without warning, he took two long strides towards me, took my face in his hands, and kissed me. I tried to stay passive, but it was impossible. I was almost immediately lost in the kiss, even more so than in the dream before, because now, I was fully cognizant of where I was and what this meant. My hands moved as if of their own accord to clutch at his clothing, to feel his body strong and warm next to mine. When he finally pulled away, he glanced at the top of my head, then looked back down at my face with a smile. "That's better," he said. "Much brighter."

"Don't do that again," I said, in a voice that came out shaky and thin.

"Don't do what?" he asked, putting his hand on my waist. "This?" He leaned in to kiss me. I felt melted, pliable. The kiss was indefinably sweet. I untucked his shirt so that I could touch his back, and he gripped my waist tightly. Time stood still for a long moment. Then Adrian pulled away from me to look me in the eye.

"That's the thing," I said. "The um, thing you shouldn't do."

"Ok," he said. "We're clear. I get it. I won't do it again." He paused and looked at me.

"After this," I said, and leaned forward to meet his lips as eagerly as if there were no reason to be ashamed. When we moved apart a few moments later, Adrian looked up at my aura again and grinned at me. "Shining like the sun," he said. "It's so convenient that the thing that makes you so happy makes me happy too."

I took a step back and steeled myself. "I seriously can't do that again," I said. "You just caught me on a bad day. I was lonely and sad. I guess maybe I needed some comforting..."

"Happy to oblige," Adrian said. "Any time."

"But I'm married," I said, for what felt like the fortieth time. "There's a commandment against this kind of thing."

"It's only a dream," Adrian said. "You can do whatever you want. Doesn't count."

"That's a cop-out," I said. "Just interpreting the situation in a way that will let us do what we– I mean, what _you_ want to do."

Adrian grinned. He'd heard my slip-up. He sat down on the couch, again patting the space by his side, and I sat down next to him. He put his arm around me, and a warm tingling feeling spread through my body from where his arm touched me. "Let's see if I get this," Adrian said. "You can't leave this marriage, right?"

"Right," I said.

"But you also can't stay in it, because it's intolerable, right?"

"It's intolerable," I said. "But..."

"So you can't leave, but you can't stay," Adrian said, cutting me off. "So you need a third option. Let me present – the third option." He waved his free arm with a flourish, indicating himself. "Ta-da!" he said. "I'm here to help."

"I don't see..."

"You can stay in the marriage, with your children, but escape into dreams with me as often as you can. It's not really cheating if it's happening in a dream. And it'll cheer you up a little."

"I love how you think that being with _you_ will fulfill me," I said.

"Depends on how you define the word _fulfill_," Adrian said, and winked. I groaned. "Come on, Sydney," he added. "Life is just a collection of moments. What does it matter if the moment is a dream or reality? If you're happy in that moment, then it's a good moment, right?"

There seemed to be no arguing with that. I nodded, trying to think of a come-back.

"And we don't have to... you know. _Fulfill_ you." Adrian winked again. "We can just hang out. I could try to keep my hands to myself." He squeezed my waist. "I will probably fail miserably at it, but I could _try_." His voice dropped a little, and he said, in a much more serious tone, "I just think that you need a friend, Sydney."

Something about that phrase hit a little too close to home. I really _did_ need a friend. I loved my daughters, but I couldn't talk to them about things that were on my mind. No one at church could really understand, nor could my boss. "I guess," I whispered. "A friend might be nice." I put my head on Adrian's shoulder and fell silent.

A few minutes went by. Adrian didn't speak. All he did was stroke my hair. I couldn't remember the last time a man had touched my hair like that. "I'll be a good friend to you, if you let me, Sage," he whispered, finally.

"I don't know what to do," I said.

"Why don't you think about it for a few days," he suggested. "I'll come back in a few nights. You can tell me then." He kissed the top of my head, then my forehead, then my cheek, then hovered an inch from my lips.

I stood up from the couch, pulling away from his touch. "You don't have to," I said. "I can tell you now. This can't happen. It's too dangerous."

"You always say that about me," Adrian said. "How am I any more dangerous to you than what is happening in the waking world?"

He had a point, and we both knew it. So I just repeated, "Don't come back."

"Are you sure?" he asked, standing up. He drew me close to him. "You might need me. Why don't I come back in, let's say, three days. You can tell me again then if you're really sure."

"Fine," I said. "But you'll be wasting your time."

"Impossible," he said. "My time is worthless." He grinned and kissed me quickly, then leaned away. "I'll let you wake up now."

"Ok," I said.

"Now," he added, and reached out a hand to stroke my cheek. I couldn't help but lean into the caress a little.

"Now," I repeated.

"Yeah," he said, and lingered another moment before he whispered, "Goodbye, Sydney."

I woke up with a start. I was in my bed, at home. My heart was beating like a bass drum and my cheeks were flushed. I got up to wash my face and have some water, then I lay back down, hoping to get back to sleep. I lay there for half an hour, but between my mental state and Rick's snoring, sleep was almost impossible.

Finally, I got up and crept to Amy's door. I knew the little girl was likely to wake up if I snuck into her room, but I just wanted to see her so badly. Sure enough, when I opened her door, she rolled over and sat up in bed. "Mom?" she said, sleepily. "What's up?"

"Just checking on you," I whispered, mendaciously.

"What's wrong?" she asked. "Did you have a nightmare or something?"

"Something like that, yeah," I said.

"You can sleep in my bed, if you want," she said, scooting over to the wall to make room. I smiled. She had gone through a phase towards the beginning of first grade when she'd had a nightmare almost every night, and had come in to sleep in my bed until Rick had forbidden it. Now she was offering me the same comfort I had tried to offer her back then.

"Thanks," I said, and crawled into the bed with her. Her bed was too small for both of us, so we both turned on our sides. I snuggled up to her and breathed in her candy-apple shampoo scent.

"I didn't know you got nightmares," she mused, sleepily.

"I do sometimes," I said. "Thanks again, sweetheart."

"You're welcome," she answered.

"You know," I said. "I was thinking. If you want to take Yertle home, you can keep her at the garage where I work, in the office. We can go over and visit her a couple times a day. She'll be safe there."

"Really?" she said, and giggled. "You're the coolest mom ever."

"I try," I said, patiently, and squeezed her close. "Goodnight, sweetheart."

"G'night, Mom," she answered.

After a few moments, I felt her body relax. She was already back asleep.

I just held her close. _My Amaryllis, _I thought. _The product of my heart's blood. _Soon, I was asleep too, my dreams quiet and undisturbed this time.


	3. Evil Creature of the Night

_A/N: Hey guys. Sorry for the slight delay, but my first two drafts of this chapter were just not working and I had to toss 'em and rewrite the whole thing twice. Chapter 4 should be up in three or four days. _

**Chapter 3: Evil Creature of the Night**

It was late on Sunday night – well, technically, it was very early on Monday morning – and I was lying on an old couch in the playroom, listening to the quiet sounds of the sleeping house and thinking about my mother. The room was dark, and the only task in front of me was falling asleep. But at the moment, that task seemed nearly impossible. I ran my hand over the scratchy fabric of the couch, finding a small grease stain with my fingertips. I smiled.

The couch was an ugly brown plaid thing that had once belonged to my mother. There was no way to know where she got it, but she had kept it out in the garage. There, the couch had served as a combination of work station, dining table, and bed. Small stains dotted the ugly fabric – coffee, transmission fluid, oil. When my mother had died, I had insisted on taking the couch. It was hard to convince Rick to let me take it into the house, but this was many years ago, when we still lived in Utah, and he was still occasionally soft-hearted. When we moved out here to North Carolina, Rick had consigned the couch to the playroom, where it had, to my surprise, become my daughters' favorite place to sit when they were reading or doing their homework. It was my favorite spot, too. I felt near my mother when I sat there, and tonight, I really needed her.

"Mom," I whispered into the darkness. "What do you think I should do?" But there was no answer.

I could just stay awake, I thought. I could stay awake all night and avoid Adrian's return that way. But he'd just find me the minute I fell asleep, whenever that was. I could start using the alchemist compound again, the one I had used for most of the first three years of my marriage, the one that made my sleep so deep that I didn't dream. But of course, that was untenable in the long-run. Besides, I didn't really want to avoid Adrian. I wanted to see him so badly that it almost scared me.

On Friday morning, when I'd woken up to the sound of Amy's Hello Kitty alarm clock and run back to my room, I had almost been able to convince myself that the meeting with Adrian had just been a dream, a normal dream. And though I knew, deep down, that it hadn't been, I still spent the day on Friday trying to rationalize the situation away. Sure, Adrian had found me again after all these years, but that was just his personality. He never gave up on anything. And yes, he might think he still loved me, but he'd no doubt feel a little differently if he knew the whole story. In fact, he'd probably never forgive me. I told myself that the situation was resolved, then wondered why I was still thinking about it so much.

I managed to put the issue of Adrian to the back-burner of my mind long enough to ask my boss if Yertle, Amy's classroom turtle, could stay the weekend in the small office I had to myself. My boss, Mr. O'Connor, was a kindly older man who knew me from church, and he adored Amy and Violet. When I told him that my husband was allergic to turtles, he enthusiastically supported the idea of keeping Yertle in my office for the weekend. So, that afternoon, the girls and I placed Yertle's tank in the corner of my office. We set up the sunlamp to keep the turtle nice and warm, and made plans to visit her several times a day throughout the weekend.

Friday night had been so fun that I managed to hardly think about Adrian at all. Rick had called to say he'd be working late – news which the girls had greeted by dancing and cheering – and we'd made individual pizzas from scratch, using all sorts of ridiculous toppings. We watched some cartoons while we ate, an activity that normally was frowned upon. We cleaned up, went over to visit Yertle for a little while, then came back and played Monopoly together, listening to the top 40 station on the radio. Every once in a while Amy would announce that a song was her favorite, and would get up to dance, explaining that she was going to be a dancer when she grew up. When even Violet, who was winning by a mile, got tired of the board game, we all curled up in my bed together to read some Harry Potter out loud together – I was the narrator, and Amy and Violet divided the other speaking parts up between them – before we all went to bed. I even had time to read a few chapters of my own book, delaying the moment when I'd have to be alone with my thoughts. I managed to read until I was nearly asleep, then turned out the light and slipped into a quiet, personal dream. I only woke up briefly when Rick, smelling strongly of soap and shampoo, had slipped into bed next to me and gone to sleep.

Now, looking back on that night, I couldn't help but mentally superimpose Adrian in each scene, wondering what it would have been like if he'd been with us. I pictured Adrian getting up to dance with Amy, or bartering with Violet to try to get Park Place, or putting something truly bizarre on his pizza, like peanut butter or something. I imagined him reading the voice of Dumbledore or Snape in Harry Potter. He had such a rich, gorgeous speaking voice. Then, because I couldn't stop myself, I pictured him lying in bed next to me and smiling before we turned out the light. I could almost feel his lips meeting mine, as we lay in a comfortable, warm bed.

Could I really have a life like that? It didn't seem possible. Even if I said yes to his proposal, and had some sort of dream affair, I could never bring him into my family. Men didn't usually want to have children sprung on them, especially other men's children. No matter what he said, there was no way I could just show up on his doorstep and introduce him to Amy and Violet. For a lot of reasons.

I turned over on my side. This couch was where I had spent a lot of the day on Saturday, while the girls were at their Saturday activities – gymnastics for Amy, and French lessons for Violet – and Rick was at the office. I had sat here, notebook in hand, listing potential pros and cons of having a dream-based relationship with Adrian. The cons were easy to list. Any relationship we began could never be completely fulfilling for either of us, since it would take place only in dreams. And it would, at some level, be a violation of my marital vows, not to mention the views of my church on associating with Moroi. The list of pros was a little shorter. Just one item: "Being happy." I had underlined that a few dozen times before I had balled the paper up and burned it in the sink.

Was being happy all there was to it? Was it simply the intoxication of Adrian's touch that I craved? Or even just the lightness that his humor brought me? I didn't think so. I thought there had to be more to it than that, or it would be easier to shake off. It wasn't as if Adrian was the only guy I'd ever been attracted to in my entire life. But Adrian seemed to be the only one who'd really appreciated me for exactly who I was.

In contrast, Rick seemed hardly able to tolerate me. I found myself thinking about Saturday evening, when Rick came back from the office. He'd greeted me cheerfully with a kiss on the cheek, something that never boded well for me. Then he'd said, "Can't _wait_ to see what you cooked up for tonight."

"For dinner?" I had replied. "I was waiting to see what you were in the mood for."

He looked at me as if I were crazy. "Sydney," he said. "It's my poker night. Did you forget?"

Inside, I kicked myself. Every fifth Saturday night, it was Rick's turn to host his friends for a poker game. I _had_ forgotten. "I can whip something up," I said, thinking fast. "They're not coming over for at least an hour. I have the stuff to make pigs-in-a-blanket..."

"I can't believe you forgot," he said, in an injured tone. "I reminded you dozens of times."

Of course, he hadn't done any such thing. But it would be impossible to explain that to him. "It'll be fine," I said, feeling my throat beginning to close up.

"It's just so disappointing," Rick continued. "I work hard to make money for the family, and you clearly don't want to support me in the small things I enjoy." He shook his head. "Maybe that's just the kind of person you are," he added. He shot me another injured look and walked out of the kitchen.

Now, lying on the couch, I wondered about that. For a moment there, Rick had actually succeeded in making me doubt myself, doubt the person I was. He was good at doing that, I realized. He'd had a lot practice over the last ten years. I had entered the marriage pretty sure of who I was and what I was worth, and now I had started to believe Rick's constant barrage of subtle jibes. "The kind of _person_ I am?" I muttered to myself, in an undertone. "What kind of person _am_ I?"

As if in answer, a fragment of the conversation I'd had with Adrian in the dream flitted through my head. "You shine so brightly," he had said. "You make everything better." But it was as if Adrian was the only one who saw it - or, at least, the only adult.

The sound of footsteps overhead brought me back to reality. From the sound of it, Violet was sneaking into Amy's room. I smiled. They were probably up to something, but I didn't really mind. Let them have their fun. After the day they'd had, they should have any fun they could get.

It really had been a horrible day. It had started when Rick had happened to begin chatting with my boss, Mr. O'Connor, after church. Mr. O'Connor had unwittingly let it slip that Yertle was currently taking up residence in one corner of my office. Rick had grabbed my arm so hard that it had hurt as he had steered me out to the car, Amy and Violet almost running to keep up.

Lunch had been a nightmare. Rick had jokingly ordered turtle soup – which thankfully the restaurant didn't carry – and had proceeded to tell Amy that tortoiseshell glasses were made out of real tortoises. She'd been halfway to tears before the food had even come out. I held her hand under the table and whispered in a voice that only she could hear, "Don't listen to a word he says. Don't cry. Everything is ok." But the worst was yet to come.

After lunch, Rick had driven us over to the service station where I worked. I again felt a cold hand of fear over my heart.

"Ok, Sydney," Rick had said, cheerfully. "Please go get the turtle for us. We're bringing it back to the school."

"What?" I asked, confused. "But the school is closed."

"Then we'll leave it near the front door," Rick said, still cheerful.

"I don't understand," I said. "She's not hurting anything. Let's just leave her in my office. She's going back to school in the morning."

"I didn't agree to my daughter taking the turtle home for the weekend," Rick said. "We're sending it back right now."

"But it's cold out," Amy interjected. "Turtles need to be warm. She'll die if we put her outside in the cold."

"It'll be fine," Rick said. "Reptiles are cold blooded. They like cold weather."

"That's not what cold blooded means, Daddy," Violet said, very softly. "It means she can't make heat of her own."

Rick's entire body tensed. "I didn't ask you for a science lesson, Violet," he said, in a quiet, dangerous voice.

"Sorry, Daddy," Violet said, and my heart broke a little more.

"Sydney," Rick said in a low hiss. "If you don't go get the turtle, I will."

I had only a split second to think. If I fought him on this, he'd make life hellish for weeks. About a month ago, I had made cupcakes for Amy to bring to school for her birthday, despite Rick's insistence that cupcakes were unhealthy and that birthday celebrations took away from proper worship of the Lord. In retaliation, he had confiscated the presents that my sisters had sent for Amy, "accidentally" broken my favorite coffee mug, and criticized everything about me constantly for a week or two. What had happened after the cupcake incident was threatening to repeat itself now. The turtle jokes at lunch would be just the beginning.

"Fine," I said, grabbing my purse and opening the car door. "I'll go get her."

"No, Mom," Amy said, tears already rolling down her cheeks. "Don't."

"It'll be ok," I told her, and closed the door and went inside.

I only had a few minutes. I dumped out a few of the alchemist ingredients I always carried in my purse and mixed up a compound quickly. I placed one drop of the mixture on Yertle's back. Then I dug around in the main service station area, finding a clean old plastic drum that probably had once held insulation. I brought it into the office and worked carefully for a minute or two. Then I packed everything up and got back outside to the car, holding the turtle tank.

"What took you so long?" Rick called back to me as I loaded the container into the trunk. I didn't answer. I just got back into the front seat, and Rick put the car into drive.

It only took a few minutes to get to the elementary school. Rick parked in the parking lot and got out of the car without a word. He went to the trunk, got out the tank, and brought it to the main entrance of the school. I saw him knock once or twice on the front door, then bend down to stare down into the container for a minute before he came back out to the car. While he did this, I turned back to the girls, who were both now quietly crying. "Don't worry," I told them. "I did something to keep Yertle safe. She'll be fine."

"Promise?" Amy asked, and wiped her nose on her sleeve.

"I promise," I said, and handed her a tissue from my purse. I thought about explaining what I'd done, but I wasn't sure if the girls could keep that kind of information to themselves. I decided I'd explain it all to them in the morning.

Rick got back in the car, a smug smile on his face. "I guess the turtle didn't like being moved around," he said. "It was practically running around the tank."

"It's a _she_," said Amy, in a tear-stricken voice.

"Whatever," Rick said.

As he started up the car, I stared at his profile. This was the man I'd been sharing a bed with for nearly ten years. I had known that he was controlling, manipulative, and self-absorbed. But I hadn't known that he was a sociopath. If he'd condemn a turtle to death for no good reason, what else would he do?

Somehow, I couldn't forget the fact that this man shared my _bed_. It was gross. I felt the little bit of food that I'd managed at lunch beginning to sour in my stomach. The nausea got worse as we drove, and the minute we got back home, I ran to the small downstairs bathroom and threw up. Rick appeared in the doorway as soon as I was done, holding a glass of water.

"Are you pregnant?" he asked, and held out the glass to me.

I took it and sipped at the water. "It's possible," I said, though I knew it wasn't.

Rick smiled. "It would be great if you were," he said. "I was starting to think you were too old to have any more. Or that there was something wrong with you."

"I'm only 30," I said.

"Well, that's old enough," he said. "Besides, it's been more than seven years since Violet."

"Six," I corrected. "She's only six."

"Sure, six," he said, as if humoring me. "Whatever. I thought we had agreed we wanted a big family."

"_You_ agreed," I answered, in a low voice. My stomach was lurching again. "In any case, it's not a matter of agreeing or not. I just haven't gotten pregnant." I didn't mention the contraception I practiced in secret. It wasn't his business, after all.

"Well, take it easy for a few days, just in case," Rick said.

"That's a good idea," I said. "I will."

"I'll order in Chinese food for dinner," Rick said. "Save you the effort of cooking." He started to leave, then turned back. "Wouldn't kill you to brush your hair or something before you come out," he added, and left the room.

I spent most of the rest of the afternoon resting on the couch in the playroom. My nausea had passed, but it was a convenient excuse to spend some time thinking by myself. The thought of having to sleep next to Rick tonight was, as Adrian would have put it, intolerable. So, after we'd all had dinner and I'd put the girls to bed, I'd ducked my head into the living room to talk to Rick. "Hey," I said. "You know, I think I'll sleep downstairs, on the couch in the playroom. It's better for my back."

"Anything you need," Rick said. "If you _are_ pregnant, I want the baby to stick around this time." He got up to gave me a kiss on the cheek, and I tried not to shiver. I made up the couch to sleep on and got out my book. After a while, I turned out the light.

And here I still was, thinking, and waiting. I still wasn't quite sure what to tell Adrian. Naturally, the incident with the turtle had brought to light an aspect of Rick's personality that I had never seen before, something dark and awful. But the world wasn't binary. Just because I hated Rick didn't mean that I had to be with Adrian. Adrian was still a Moroi and still...

My thoughts were interrupted when I heard a strange sound from outside – something rustling in the bushes. I ran to the window in time to see a small body tiptoeing across the grass. It was Amy. She had apparently jumped out of her window, landing in the azaleas, and was moving very quickly towards the road.

"Oh, God," I whispered. I ran outside in my bare feet, crossing the damp grass and catching up to her as quickly as I could. She stopped when she realized that I was there and turned to look at me defiantly.

"What on Earth are you doing?" I asked her, as I began checking her head to foot for injuries. There was a small scrape on her elbow, but she seemed otherwise ok.

"Going to get Yertle," she said, proudly. Then, in a slightly less strident tone, she asked, "Am I in trouble?"

She met my eyes. I tried to be angry, but I just couldn't. She was trying to do the right thing. I knew the feeling very well. "Oh, come here," I said, and pulled her into my arms. "I love you so much," I said. "You're my little super-hero. Did you know that?"

"Come on, Mom," Amy said, uncomfortably. "Don't say things like that."

"Well, you are," I said. I took her hand and began leading her back inside. "Listen, don't worry," I told her, in a quiet voice. "Yertle's fine. She's been back at my office the whole time."

A big smile spread across Amy's face. "Really?" she said. "But then what was in the tank? Another turtle?"

"No," I said. "Nothing's in the tank. I just did a little trick to make your Dad think there was a turtle in there." It was a pretty complicated alchemist technique known as the mirror. It created a temporary replica of nearly anything. The replica would disintegrate after only 20 minutes or so, but in the meantime, it was pretty accurate, and could even make simple movements. It wouldn't have convinced anyone who knew a lot about turtles, but it was enough to fool Rick, and thus it was enough to keep Yertle safe and sound, in the plastic container back in my office. In the morning, I would have to get up early to retrieve the tank from the school's front porch so that I could bring the turtle back, tank and all, when school started.

"You're always doing tricks," Amy said, with a touch of admiration in her voice. "Will you teach me someday how to do tricks too?"

"Maybe," I said, although the idea of Amy as an alchemist was disturbing for a great number of reasons. "If you're sure you want that."

We sat down in the playroom so that I could treat her injured elbow. "The school is fifteen miles away," I said, applying triple antibiotic lotion to the scrape. "You were going to walk there, in the dark?"

"I'm a fast walker," she said. "And Violet helped me trace a route on the map that's only 12.3 miles, if I went through the woods. I wouldn't have gotten lost or anything." She held up an old GPS unit that she and Violet must have found in Rick's closet after he upgraded last time. "And it's not _that_ dark out," she added.

"Violet helped you, huh?" I said, smiling. I put a small bandage on the scrape, then planted a kiss on Amy's forehead.

"Um, not really," she said. "I mean, Violet didn't know I was going to sneak out or anything..."

I knew Amy was just back-pedaling to keep Violet out of trouble, and to put her mind at ease, I said, in a mild voice, "She's a good sister."

"She's pretty cool," Amy said, which was her biggest compliment. She smiled at me, and I pulled her into another hug.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you about Yertle," I said. "I forget sometimes that you're growing up so fast. I was going to tell you and Violet in the morning, once Yertle was safe back at school."

"Ok," Amy said, squirming out of my embrace. "Well, I guess I'm just glad that you saved her."

"Of course I saved her," I said. "Now, go back to bed," I added, affectionately. "And don't sneak out ever again until you're at least 20, ok?"

"If I'm 20, I won't have to sneak out," she said, pouting a little.

"Exactly," I said. "Now scoot!"

"G'nite, Mom," Amy said, and grinned at me before she left the room. I barely heard her soft footsteps through the house as she went back to bed.

"My super-hero," I whispered to myself again as I lay back down on the couch. She really was, I realized.

And as I lay there, a lot of images flooded into my head. I remembered telling Rose Hathaway that she was an evil creature of the night. I remembered telling Adrian that the golden lily on my cheek was a symbol of my honor and integrity. I remembered vowing to honor and obey Rick. I remembered promising my infant daughters, as I first held them in my arms, that I would do everything in my power to protect them.

I thought about Rick telling me that I was a terrible person for forgetting to make snacks for his poker game, and about Adrian telling me that I made everything better. I remembered Rick telling me to brush my hair, and suggesting I was too old to bear children. I remembered Adrian telling me I was more beautiful now that I had been ten years ago.

I pictured my children dancing with joy at the thought of spending a night away from their father. I thought about myself, glad to be assigned to a far-away country if it meant getting away from my father. I thought about my mother, tinkering with cars quietly in her own garage, hiding from her husband. I thought about myself, sitting on my mother's couch, avoiding my husband. I pictured Amy and Violet, grown up and married to men they hated. I felt something clench inside of me tightly, so tight that I thought it might snap.

Had I learned this from my mother? Had I learned to sacrifice happiness? Was that what she wanted for me, what I wanted for myself? More importantly, was that what I wanted for my daughters? What exactly was I protecting my daughters from? Who was really the evil creature of the night around here?

I thought about two words I'd written on my pros and cons list: "Being happy."

Just then, the doorbell rang. I got up to answer it, noting without surprise that I was in my old dorm room in Palm Springs, and dressed in my old Amberwood Prep uniform. I opened the door, and there he was, looking gorgeous as always, holding a bouquet of flowers and celery sticks.

"Hi, Adrian," I said. "I've been waiting for you."

"Hi, Sage," he said. "Can I –" But he couldn't finish the rest of his sentence because I was already kissing him.


	4. A Single Candle

**Chapter 4: A Single Candle**

Still kissing him, I dragged Adrian inside and he closed the door behind us, his bouquet falling to the floor. It felt so _good_ to kiss him, even in a dream, that I just couldn't stop._  
_

"Glad to... see you … too," he said, between kisses, and we found ourselves tumbling down on a couch, which turned out to be the plaid couch from my playroom. I untucked his shirt and dug my fingernails into his back as he kissed my lips, my ears, my neck. "I guess... this means... you're saying yes... to my idea?" he said.

"Hmmm," I sighed, as I grasped his back more tightly. "I guess..."

"You guess?" he repeated. He moved his lips away from my neck. "What does that mean?"

"I don't know," I said. "Doesn't matter." I kissed him again, but he pulled away from me, sitting up a little.

"As much as I'm enjoying this, " he said, "I have to know. What's going on here?"

"I'm not sure," I said. "I just... I don't know. I wanted to kiss you."

"Yeah, I got that," he said. "You're allowed. In fact, you're encouraged. But when you're done kissing me, are you going to go running away from me all of a sudden? Like, am I suddenly going to wake up and never see you again?"

"I don't think so," I said. "I don't want to do anything to hurt you. Not again."

"So, what's the deal here?" he asked. "Does all this mean that you've made up your mind?"

"Um," I said. "Sort of. I was thinking that you were right. That I needed a friend."

He gestured to our bodies, lying close together on the narrow couch. Then he placed one hand on my left breast, on top of my shirt. We both looked down at it, and he gave me a sly smile. "Friends," he said, and squeezed, very gently. "Is _that_ what we are?"

I shoved his hand off of me. "Yes," I said. "We're friends."

"Right," he murmured, and bent to my neck. Sometimes I wondered what it would be like if he actually bit me, as in, with his fangs, because the things he did to me with just his lips and tongue were extraordinary.

"Stop that," I whispered.

"Do you really want me to?" he asked, moving a quarter of an inch from my neck. "Because I will..."

"No," I answered, and he smiled and went right back to it. After a moment, though, he stopped, and leaned back to look me in the eyes. I sighed. "You made your point," I said.

"Tell me about it," he said, and pulled at the crotch of his jeans uncomfortably.

I rolled my eyes. "Come on," I said.

"On what?" he asked, mischievously.

I couldn't repress the smile. "Alright, seriously," I said, hitting his shoulder lightly. He laughed, that deep gorgeous laugh I loved so much. "I get it," I said. "You don't think we're friends just because of this... attraction... thing... between us."

"No, I _do_ think we're friends," he said. "I just don't think we're _only_ friends. You can say we are, and I can try to be good, but it's hard when I'm around you."

"I know," I said, and nodded, and my eyes went down to his crotch again. "I can see that."

Adrian studied my face for a second, then laughed. "Oh man," he said. "I had almost forgotten how much fun you were." He kissed my neck loudly, as both of us laughed. Then he looked at me, stroking the hair out of my face, before he leaned in to kiss my lips again, softly at first, but with growing intensity.

"Ok, ok," I said, leaning back and gently pushing him away from me. "You, go sit over there." I pointed to my bed, which was a few steps away.

Adrian blinked at me a few times in confusion, then moved over to my bed. He patted the spot next to him, saying, "Well?"

"No," I said. "I'm staying here, and you're staying there. Otherwise, we won't get anything accomplished."

He smiled at me, then said, "Fine, but I'm dressing for the occasion." He shimmered all over, and then his outfit of a t-shirt and jeans was replaced by a thin white undershirt and a pair of black silk boxer shorts. He looked simultaneously extremely cuddly and ridiculously sexy, and I looked over at the wall to steady myself. "What?" he asked, and I could hear the laughter in his voice. "This is what I wear to bed."

"I'm sure you do," I said. "But... it's so distracting."

"I know," he said. "Think how I feel."

"I'm not wearing a sexy outfit," I said, gesturing to my uniform.

"That's what _you_ think," he sighed. "You make all that beige look good."

"I thought you hated the beige," I said.

"I don't know," he said. "It's like... the good old days, you know? When we got to hang out all the time. Before you left."

I looked down at my clothes, then said, "I don't want to wear this. My life isn't this anymore."

"Fine," Adrian said, and waved his hand. I looked down to find myself in the outfit I was wearing to sleep in, in real life – a t-shirt and a pair of running shorts. He looked at it and grinned. "That's kind of hot."

"How is this hot?" I asked, my eyes falling to the ground in embarrassment. I was a mommy – _so_ not the hot party girl that he was probably surrounded by these days.

"How could it not be?" he said. "It's you." I sighed and he went on. "You're going to have to face the fact that you're hot. You were before, and you still are. And it isn't just your body. It's _you_." I looked up and saw the sincerity in his face. "I mean, yeah, it's your body too, but it's all of you. Like... You have this... shine to you, you know? It's your aura, it's your heart. I feel like I'd know you in the dark, from miles away."

"You're the only one who sees me that way," I said.

"No," Adrian said, shaking his head. "Your husband might be a jackass and a moron, but even _he_ sees what I see. Why else do you think he'd criticize and insult you so much? He wants to put your light out, either because he just can't stand to be around anything so beautiful, or because he's afraid someone will take you away. Either way, he's been trying to tear you down for years, Sydney. I'm just glad that you're still more or less intact." He smiled.

"More or less," I repeated, and looked around the room. "Why are we at Amberwood?" I asked, partially to change the subject.

Adrian shrugged. "Neutral ground, I guess," he said. "Plus, it's kind of fun." He winked. "A man in your dorm room! So naughty." I smiled despite myself as he continued. "I guess you like bad boys," he said. "You have a soft spot for guys like me. The kind who sneak into your room in the middle of the night..."

"No," I said. "I never went for that type."

"So it's just _me_ you have a soft spot for," Adrian said.

"I guess so," I said, and met his eyes.

"I'm your first and only bad boy," he said.

"And my first and only Moroi."

He smiled. "That's fine by me," he said. "You're my first and only human. And my first and only nerd."

"Hey!" I said. "I'm not a nerd!"

He raised an eyebrow. "Come on, Sydney. We both know it. Just because you're the hottest nerd on the planet doesn't change the fact that you are a nerd. It's ok. It's awesome, in fact. In fact, you're so awesome that you ruined me for life. I can't date stupid girls any more, all because of you."

I leaned back a little on the couch. His words had brought me back down to earth. "Have you um, been dating? Recently?"

He shrugged. "Recently? No. I don't know, Syd. I mean, of course I've dated girls since I last saw you. It's been ten years, and you told me that you didn't want me to come after you. So, I tried to move on."

"Yeah," I said. "I get that."

"But hardly anything ever got serious," he said. "I guess a tiny part of me thought maybe something would, you know? Like, I had been crazy about Rose, then I met you, and I realized I had never really loved Rose at all. I wondered if maybe I'd meet a girl who would make me realize that I hadn't ever loved you. But that never happened. It was like, the more I dated, the more I just missed you." He gave me a wry smile.

"Oh," I said. "I guess I should say sorry."

Adrian shrugged again. "I dated this one girl for a few years," he said. "She was a Moroi. Nice girl – pretty, smart, all my friends and family liked her, everything like that. There was no reason for me to dump her or anything. But one day she said to me, 'I feel like you don't really love me.' And I looked in her eyes and knew she was right. She got her stuff and left the next day, and that was that. I guess I only have one parking space in my heart, and you're occupying it."

I tried not to smile too widely. It was awful of me to wish him pain, but... Wow, I was so relieved to know that there wasn't anyone serious in his life. "And um, everything else?" I said. "How is everything else going?"

"Hmm," Adrian said. "Well, the art thing is going well. I doubt I'd make enough money from it to fund my life if I weren't also independently wealthy. But art helps keep my head together. That, and swimming. I swim a few times a week. It was Jill's idea, naturally. But I guess you don't have to be a water user to enjoy the pool."

An image came to me of Adrian in a Speedo, getting out of the pool, water dripping down his body. I took a deep breath, then exhaled. "I'm glad," I said. "Glad you're ok."

He grinned. I got the feeling he knew exactly what I was thinking about. "We can go swimming together," he said. "This is a _dream_." He gestured around us. "We can do anything. We can go swimming in Victoria Falls. Or the blue Aegean Sea. Anything you want."

I looked down at my hands. "Yeah," I said, vaguely.

"Aaaaand," Adrian said. "Now we're back where we started. Because the question is, what _do_ you want?"

"I don't know," I said. "I mean, I know I want to see you. I can't pretend like this isn't really happening. I ran away once. I don't want to run away again."

"You don't know how good it is to hear that," Adrian said, in a low voice.

I smiled. "It feels good to say it," I said, and fell silent. I expected Adrian to say something to fill the space, but he just watched me and waited for me to speak again. I looked back down at the couch. "This couch wasn't back in my dorm room at Amberwood," I said.

"No," he said. "I don't know why it's here in the dream. _I_ didn't put it here." He made a slightly disgusted face. "It's sort of seen better days, hasn't it?"

"It was my mother's," I said. "I inherited it after she died."

Adrian's eyes widened in shock. "Oh, god, Sydney, now I feel like such a jerk..."

"It's ok," I said, smiling slightly. "It really is. She'd be the first to agree. It really is an awful couch. She kept it out in the garage. That's why it's so stained. I um... I keep it in the playroom. I know it's trashed but it's comfortable and..."

"It was your mom's," Adrian said.

"Yeah," I said. I paused. "I guess I've been thinking about her a lot the past few days."

"I'm so sorry for your loss," Adrian said. "I didn't know."

"You had no way to know," I said. "Anyway, it happened five years ago..."

"Yeah, but... It matters," Adrian said. "Five years ago, or fifty years ago. So, um, was she sick, or..."

"She was killed," I said. "Um. It's a long story."

"I've got time," Adrian said. "Tell me what happened."

I drew in a long, slow breath. "Well, my dad went out to Minneapolis on alchemist business," I said. "The alchemist on duty there had... you know. Died. Well, she'd been killed, really." Adrian nodded, and I went on. "And they needed someone to fill in while they found a more permanent replacement. So my dad agreed to go, even though he was sort of retired. It was going to be for just three weeks, no big deal, but my mom volunteered to go with him."

"Why?" Adrian asked, wrinkling his nose a little. "What's in Minneapolis?"

"Hey, it's a nice place," I said. "Nice people. Don't knock it."

"Ok, but why did your mom agree to go all the way there for three weeks?"

"I think she just wanted a change, you know? Plus, my dad doesn't like to fly, so they were going to drive there, and then on the way back, they were going to have a little road trip – see the Grand Canyon, stuff like that. My mom was really excited about all that. I um, saw her the night before she left. We had dinner. She played with Amy and Violet. They were still so little. Violet was only about 14 months old. That was..." I wiped at my eyes. "That was the last time I ever saw her."

"Hey," Adrian said, in a soft voice. "Let me just..." He got up as he spoke and sat down next to me on the couch again. He put one arm around me, and I leaned my head on his shoulder. "Ok, that's better," Adrian said. "So, they drove to Minneapolis?"

"_She_ drove," I corrected. "She loved to drive. She took the Corvette she'd just finished working on." I swallowed heavily, thinking of the car. "Anyway, when they got there, they checked into this hotel in the downtown area. The alchemists were paying, I guess. I hope it was nice. They were there for like a week. And then one night my dad went out on some assignment and my mom... Well, I don't know exactly what happened. She must have seen something from the window in her room. Or maybe she went out on a walk, I don't know. But in any case, she tried to run down a Strigoi with her car."

"A Strigoi?" Adrian said. I felt his muscles tense.

"Yeah," I said. "She ended up saving a family of five, by distracting the Strigoi long enough for them to get away. The alchemists debriefed the family later. They said..." I took a deep breath, then said, in a strained voice, "They said she was their hero."

"You must be really proud," Adrian said. He sounded proud, himself.

"I am," I said, then, louder, I added, "I really am! She was their _hero_!" I hit the couch arm for emphasis, then wiped away my tears and went on. "Of course, those people she saved, their memories were modified later on. They don't remember anything about that night anymore. Not even her." Adrian sighed a little, but didn't say anything. "Anyway," I said. "Um, when she hit the Strigoi with her car, it still didn't kill him, you know?"

"Right," Adrian said. "I'd guess it'd be like hitting a tree."

"Exactly," I said. "Her car was basically totaled, and of course she was pretty badly hurt. But that's not..." I couldn't go on for a minute. Adrian squeezed me tight. When I finally could speak again, I didn't bother to even wipe away the tears. "That's not how she died," I said. "There was security camera footage, so we know. The Strigoi reached through her smashed up car window and broke her neck with his hands. Like _that_." I snapped.

"That's awful," Adrian said.

"I haven't told you the worst part yet," I said. "You know what the worst part is?"

"What?"

"The alchemists had to come up with a cover story to explain it all. How her car got like that. How she died. So they moved the car, made it look like she'd hit a tree, like you said. And to explain how it would have happened, they messed with her blood test results to make it look like she was drunk. So..."

I couldn't go on, but Adrian had figured it out. "So your mother, the hero, goes down in history as a drunk driver," he said.

"Yes," I said, in a tiny voice.

"And that's why you left the alchemists," Adrian said.

"Yes," I said again. "I couldn't face any of them after that. My father least of all. I even encouraged Rick to accept a job that moved us out of state so I could avoid them."

"Well, I'm glad you left the group," Adrian said. "I always hated those guys. And I'm so sorry that all of that happened." He kissed my cheek. "Your mother deserved much better."

"That's exactly it," I said. "She did." I ran my hand over the couch, then took another deep breath. "I didn't really tell you the worst part yet," I added, in a voice that barely qualified as a whisper.

"Tell me, sweetheart," Adrian said.

"I've been thinking a lot about it, the last few months," I said. "See, she must have known she couldn't stop the Strigoi. She had to have known that the Strigoi would kill her. I know she did what she did to help those people, but..." I shook my head, hating what I was about to say. "I think... I think maybe she knew she was going to die. And maybe, she... She didn't _care_." The last words came out in a choked whisper.

Adrian gave me some time to collect myself, and then I went on. "My father was a really difficult man to live with," I said. "I'm not saying she... you know. Killed herself. I'm just saying that maybe she didn't value her life so highly. Because she was so... unhappy." I shook my head, a fresh wave of tears flooding my eyes. "I know that she loved me and my sisters. But I think she was just so... _unhappy_."

"I don't know what to say," Adrian said. "I'm so sorry."

"Before, you asked me what I wanted," I said. "And I started talking about the couch. But..."

"I get it," Adrian said.

"You do?" I said, absurdly grateful for that.

"Yes," Adrian said, and kissed my cheek again. "You want to honor the memory of your mom by not repeating her mistakes."

"Wow," I said, blinking in surprise. I gave it a minute, then said it again. "Wow. Yeah. That's it. That's exactly it."

"Then, that's what you'll do," Adrian said. He stroked my face and smiled at me. "I'll visit you as often as you want me to. I'll make cheering you up my number one priority."

I shook my head. "It won't work," I said. "I feel like it'll just make it worse."

"How can it?" Adrian asked.

I looked away for a minute, trying to think about how I could explain it. "Have you ever held a single candle while you walked around in a dark area?" I asked.

"Probably?" Adrian answered, looking doubtful. "I don't remember one way or another."

"The candle light doesn't illuminate the area at all," I said. "All that happens is that you can see the light of the candle, but nothing else. Your own path is actually harder to see because you're blinded by that one spark of light."

"But you could use the one candle you have to light other candles," Adrian said. "And then the room will be lighter."

"And then maybe the whole house would burn down," I said.

"And then you could escape that awful house and run out into the moonlight."

"What if my children got burned?"

"I'd heal them," Adrian said. "I'd heal all three of you."

I put my head down, my cheek to his chest, and he pulled me to him. "What would you get out of it?" I asked.

He let out a little laugh. "I'd get _you_, Sydney." I looked up to see he was smiling. "And that would be awesome."

I leaned back into him. "You'd suddenly have two kids on your hands," I said.

"You make that sound so awful," Adrian said. "What would be so bad about that?"

"Two kids?" I said, looking up again. "Do I really have to explain?"

"But they'd be your kids," Adrian said. "So they'd be cool. Of course, I can't promise I'd be that great of a dad, or step-dad, or whatever. I mean, I'd probably spoil them rotten."

"They could use a little of that," I said.

"Well, I'd probably screw it up somehow," Adrian said. "But not for lack of trying."

"As long as you don't try to kill their pets, you'd be in the lead," I said. Adrian let out a colorful exclamation, and I told him the story of Yertle – her peril, her unlikely escape from harm, and her would-be savior, Amy. When I finished the story, Adrian was shaking his head in wonder.

"I don't know where to even begin," he said. "Your husband is beyond asshole territory. He's like, a sociopath."

"Yep," I said. "Pretty much sums it up."

"And you... You are so awesome. Why didn't you ever tell me that you can make temporary substitute turtles?"

"I can make temporary substitute anything," I said. "Well, not big things. They have to be smaller than the human heart."

"Why?" Adrian asked.

"Do you really want to learn the fundamental precepts of alchemy?" I asked.

"Not at the moment," he admitted, with a smile. "And, by the way, your Amy sounds like a really rocking little kid. I like her already." He laughed. "Sneaking out in the middle of the night to save a turtle? Awesome."

"She's a hoot," I said.

"And meanwhile, your other daughter - Violet, right?"

"Yes, Violet."

"Was she just sleeping, a good little future alchemist?"

"Violet will _never _be an alchemist," I said.

"Don't have to convince me," Adrian said, mildly.

"Anyway," I said, after a beat. "She wasn't asleep. It was probably all her idea. She's the one who sketched the route on the GPS."

"So she was Amy's partner in crime?" Adrian said.

"Yep," I said, dryly. "That's Violet for you."

"Ok," Adrian said. "That does it. Your children are both future criminals and I adore them already. I've got to meet them."

I looked down at my hands. "That can't happen," I said.

"Fine," Adrian said. "By the way, what state are you living in nowadays? And what's your married name?"

I gave him a withering look.

"Hey, can't blame a guy for trying," he said, grinning, and then his face grew more serious. "Look, we'll figure all this out as we go along. For now, let's just hang out, ok? Enjoy each other's company. I have a lot to tell you about, and I want to hear more about your life. Maybe we can make each other a little happier. And maybe later on, we'll decide to move some of this relationship to the waking world. Or maybe we won't. But for now, if this is what you can give, some dreams, some of the time? I'll take it, Sydney."

"I don't know what else to do," I said. "I want you around, even if... it's impossible."

"Nothing's impossible," Adrian said. "You're talking to someone who can bring the dead back to life. Don't give up, Sydney."

I leaned forward, resting my cheek against his. I had almost forgotten how real Adrian's spirit-dreams felt. "I'll try not to," I said. "But listen, I have to wake up early and go get Yertle's tank. So I can't hang out here much longer."

"You'll wake up when you wake up," Adrian said. "Stay here with me until then. I mean, you have an alarm set, right?"

"Yeah..."

"So, we'll listen for it."

"And then I'll just wake up all of a sudden? Without even getting to say goodbye?"

"Oh," said Adrian. "That's your concern? Easy." He grabbed me and kissed me soundly for a minute. When he leaned back, he met my eyes and said, "Goodbye, Sydney."

"Goodbye, Adrian," I said, my head still swimming a little from the kiss.

"There," he said, fondly. "Now we've said goodbye, let's just hang out until you wake up."

"I guess... I can't argue with that," I said.

"Nope," Adrian said. "But one thing quickly, just in case you get pulled out of my arms by the cruel alarm clock... How soon can I come back and see you again?"

"Tomorrow," I said, promptly. "Come back tomorrow."

"I like it when you get bossy with me," Adrian said, his voice a seductive growl. "Now come here."

"I can't, you know..." I whispered, as his hands began roaming my body. "I mean, I can only do so much. I'm married."

"Fine," Adrian whispered. "We'll only do so much. And I'll take a cold shower as soon as I wake up. Or even better, a hot one." He grinned at me, then lowered his mouth to my lips.


	5. Time Changes Everything

_A quick reminder before you start reading this – this story takes ten place in the future. That's why some of the things they're saying will be slightly... future-y. :) _

_Also, sorry for the slight delay in getting the chapter up, but I wanted to actually have a decent functional draft of the next chapters laid out before I put this one up. :) _

**Chapter 5: Time Changes Everything  
**

I lay in bed, under a soft blanket. Someone warm was holding me in his arms, my back to his chest. Our bodies were nested, the bends of our knees aligned, the crook of his arm fitting along my waist. That tender space between my shoulder blades was warmed by his contact. I could sense sunlight against my closed eyelids. It was morning, but not time to wake up yet – just a time to snuggle close. This was wonderful...

I stiffened. I was in my own bed. That meant the man had to be...

"Rick?" I whispered, sitting up a little.

I turned around and looked into a pair bright green eyes. "Afraid not," the man said.

"Adrian!" I said, and rolled over on top of him with a giggle. "What is going _on_?"

"It's a dream," he said. "Remember?"

"Oh," I said, as it all came back to me. It was Sunday night, a full week since I'd decided to let Adrian back into my life.

"I've been waiting for you for hours," Adrian said. "You said you'd be in bed early tonight."

"Rick made me move back up to the bedroom," I said. "It was hard to get to sleep."

"He's not buying the whole 'pregnancy' bit anymore?" Adrian asked.

"No, he still is," I said. A certain alchemist compound I had taken a few days ago had ensured the delay of my period for another week or two, helping to cement my lie. "But he got a special mattress pad that he read is supposed to be good for pregnant women. I had to go back upstairs."

"And now here we are," Adrian, gesturing around us.

I wrinkled my nose. "I don't really want to be _here_," I said. "Not my real bedroom."

"Well, where do you want to go instead?" Adrian asked.

"We could always go back to Amberwood," I suggested.

On Monday night, the night after Adrian and I had come to an agreement, I had found myself back in the Amberwood dorm the moment I'd fallen asleep, and Adrian and I had cuddled up on the couch and talked about nothing in particular for hours – when we weren't kissing. It had been such a nice, low-key night that all day Tuesday I'd walked around with a smile on my face.

"That was nice," Adrian said. "But we have the whole world open to us!"

"I know," I said, caressing his face. His cheek was slightly stubbly, as if he really were just waking up in the morning. But his hair was perfectly styled, which ruined the illusion a little. "So why did you take me here?"

"I wanted you to know what it'd be like to wake up with me," Adrian said.

"That part was really nice," I said, snuggling down with him again. "But does it have to be _this_ bed?"

"Where do you want to go?" Adrian asked. "We could go back to Beijing. You know, the Starlight Lounge is the top floor of a really nice hotel." He winked.

We'd taken Tuesday night off from dreaming, but on Wednesday night, my dream began in an elevator of a posh building. Adrian had met me when I'd stepped off the elevator on the top floor. "Welcome to the Starlight Lounge," he had said, and with a snap of his fingers, changed my casual clothes into a beautiful blue Chinese-style dress made of embossed silk. We sat down on a soft couch in the bar area, which was lit only with a few LED lights in the ceiling, made to look like stars. As we looked out over the night landscape of Beijing's flashing neon buildings, it had taken me a moment to realize that the bar was actually _rotating_. The view changed subtly from moment to moment as we drank champagne and kissed. I had felt like a jet-setting VIP. The only thing missing had been... well, _reality_.

"I liked the bar..." I said, slowly. "It was really something."

"I know," Adrian said. "Such a throwback, but so earnest about it. The rooms in that hotel are really nice. We could cuddle up in a bed in one of the presidential suites... Or even better, in one of the hot tubs." He grinned.

"Too dangerous," I said, shaking my head. "We could go to the Great Wall or something instead."

"I want to do that," Adrian said. "I'd love to take you there. But I'm more in the mood for... cuddling today." He squeezed me tight enough to make me squeak a little, then grabbed my butt with both hands.

"Hey!" I said. "I think that's called 'groping,' not cuddling."

"You didn't mind so much the other night," Adrian said, grinning.

I smiled back at him, remembering. On Thursday night, Adrian had brought me to an old-fashioned drive-in. Well, a _dream_ of an old-fashioned drive-in. We'd watched an incomprehensible sci-fi movie from the 50s – Adrian explained that it was hard to project a movie in a dream, so he was sort of stitching it together from a bunch of bad movies he'd seen and wasn't paying much attention to it. I didn't mind. It was actually funny to watch a movie that was being made up on the spot, and half the time we just made out while curious sound effects were piped in on our little speakers. After that, Adrian had driven me to a spot near the Hollywood sign, and we'd made out some more. I had just started to waver in my resolve about the whole "no sex" thing when I was dragged out of the dream by force. It was morning, and Violet was shaking me awake, thinking I was having a bad dream because of the funny sounds I'd been making.

"I didn't mind the other night," I admitted. "And I didn't really mind just now, either," I added, in his ear. He promptly grabbed my butt again. "Ok, ok..." I said. "Let's be... good."

I got up out of bed and Adrian let out a wolf-whistle. ""Wow," he said. "Look at you.

I looked down at my outfit and saw that I was wearing a seafoam blue nightdress made of soft modal. It was knee length and kind of sexy, with spaghetti straps, a cowlneck front, and a low back. I had seen it earlier that day in an online shopping site, and I'd picked it out, mentally, to wear in my next dream with Adrian. "Glad you like it," I said.

Adrian got up out of bed and came towards me. He was wearing more or less the same thing he'd worn in our Amberwood dreams – silk boxer shorts, navy blue this time, and a tank top. He looked so damn sexy that I almost couldn't look directly at him.

"You look like a dream," he said in my ear, as he gathered me to him. "Now let's go home." He squeezed me tight, then released me. I looked around. Now we were in a living room, with an attached kitchen area and two hallways leading off to the right and the left. There were only a few small lights on, and the windows now showed a dark sky. Adrian said, "This is my apartment in Philly. Want a tour, or do you just want to hang out?"

"Tour," I said, but I took hold of him so that he couldn't move.

"That door leads to the guest room and my painting studio," he said, pointing to a door on the left side of the room.

"Got to have those," I said, and leaned forward a little.

"We're in the living room," he said. "That's the kitchen..."

"Mmm-hmm," I said, taking his earlobe between my lips. He loved it when I kissed his ears.

In an unsteady voice, he said, "That... hallway... leads to my room... Oh, wow, Sydney. I thought you wanted to be good?"

"This _is_ good," I whispered.

We lay down on his couch for a while, kissing until we were about ready to lose our minds. Finally, we had to force ourselves to stop. Adrian made us a soft fleece blanket and we cuddled up on the couch.

"Tell me about the last couple days," Adrian murmured. "I haven't seen you since Thursday night."

I shrugged. "Just a typical Friday and Saturday."

"Maybe," Adrian said. "But I want to know all the little things. Even if they're dumb."

"Hmm," I said. "Well, on Friday, there was this car that an owner brought in, saying that he'd taken it to three repair shops and no one could fix it, and that people had said to bring it to _our_ shop..."

"Because of you?"

"I don't know if it's because of me, exactly," I said. "People don't ask for me by name. Probably because I'm a girl."

"People are dumb," Adrian said. "So what happened with this car?"

"I figured out what was wrong with it," I said. "There was a micro-tear in the fuel line, which kept attracting small rodents to come and nibble. The scent that's added to gasoline is actually attractive to wildlife, who also enjoy the effect of the fumes."

"The effect of the fumes?" Adrian repeated.

"Yes," I said. "Inhaling gasoline fumes can cause a brief rush of euphoria, though of course it's terrible for you..."

"Yeah, I know," Adrian said. "Ways to get high are – well, used to be – my specialty. But you're telling me that squirrels and mice were getting high off this guy's gasoline?"

"I guess you could say that," I said.

Adrian laughed. "That's hilarious," he said. "Omigod."

"Anyway," I said, "I cleaned it all up, replaced the fuel line, then put down an alchemist stay-away compound, so that the animals wouldn't return."

"Love that," Adrian said. "You're brilliant."

I smiled. "And today, I brought the girls to their activities and did housework. Nothing exciting. What did you do?"

Adrian shrugged. "Well, yesterday, I did a load of laundry," he said. "I'm always really impressed with myself when I do that. And today, I started a new painting."

"Really?" I said. "That's great! I'm so glad." Adrian smiled a little, and I added, keeping a straight face, "Was it a dark load, or a light load?"

Adrian laughed. "All my clothes are dark," he said. "And the painting is of you, of course."

I shifted uncomfortably. "As long as no one can tell."

"Only people who know both of us can tell," he said. "Like Eddie, or Rose. And they're trustworthy."

I paused. "Are you... close to Rose, these days?"

He looked at me with a little surprise. "We're friends," he said. "I mean, it's been, what, ten, eleven years since we dated? And we only dated for a few months. It took a while for me to get past the whole jealousy and anger thing, but..." He shrugged. "She was one of the few people I could talk to about you after you left. She knew you and cared about you too. And she listened. I think in some ways that brought us back together – friend wise, I mean."

"Ok," I said. "I'm glad that you're friends again."

"Me too," he said. "I'm not exactly best friends with Dimitri, or Christian, for that matter, so it's weird to go over there, and I don't see her so much."

"Christian Ozera?" I said. Adrian nodded, and I asked, "What does Christian have to do with it?"

"Oh," Adrian said. "He's the sperm donor for their kids. He comes by a bit, visiting with them. They call him 'Uncle Christian.' I'm not sure if they know that he's their dad, but they must know Dimitri _isn't_."

I considered that. "Isn't that like, super awkward, for Lissa and Rose?"

"Apparently not," Adrian said. "It was Lissa's idea. She wanted to be in a big family with Rose... I don't know, I think the whole idea is weird."

I swallowed heavily. "Oh yeah?" I said, in as normal a voice as I could.

"Oh, don't get me wrong," Adrian said. "I'm cool with adoption and stuff. I just don't think I could do what Lissa did, or what Dimitri did, for that matter. It must be weird. Anyway..." Adrian squeezed me. "I don't want to talk about them. I want to talk about you." He kissed my cheek. "How are Violet and Amy?"

"They're great," I said. "Violet is going to take her math classes with the second graders starting next week."

"So she's a little genius like her mom?" he said.

"They both are," I said. "Amy's in a special after-school math class for gifted and talented students."

"Sheesh," Adrian said. "What else haven't you told me about them?"

You can't ask a question like that of a mom like me. I found myself telling him all sorts of stories about my daughters. He didn't ask to meet them again, but he listened with great attention to the stories I told, encouraging me to tell more.

"So," he said, when I finished telling him about the time that Violet had coaxed a stray cat down from a tree a few hours after it had run up there to escape Amy's tender affections. "What are they going to be for Halloween this year?"

I sighed. "Sad little girls," I said. "Rick found out from a Church elder about the school's planned Halloween parade and banned their participation. I had tried so hard to hide that from him..."

"So no costumes?" Adrian said.

"No costumes."

"Hmm," said Adrian. He put a hand on my cheek. "You know, I sort of have an idea."

"What are you thinking?"

"Remember what you said to me, the other night, in Beijing?"

"What in particular?"

"About your dress," he said. "You said you felt like you were dressing up in a costume."

I shrugged. "I guess so," I said. "I just hadn't worn anything so pretty in a long time."

"That's just it, though," Adrian said. "If you were wearing a dress like that in most places, people wouldn't think you were in a costume. But you'd _feel_ like you were in a costume."

I squinted at him a little. "So you're saying...?"

"If the girls just wear something they wouldn't normally wear, they'd feel like they were in a costume," he said. "Not something that screams 'costume' but something... special. Something they know is a costume, even if no one else knows."

I smiled, mulling that over. "That's a good idea," I said, slowly. We talked it over, and together, we came up with an idea for what each girl could wear. When we were done planning, I hugged Adrian tightly for a moment. "Thank you," I whispered.

"What'd I do?" he said.

"You saved Halloween for my daughters."

"Happy to help," he said. "It sounds weird, but I feel protective of those two. I never even met them, but I like them."

"You'd like them if you met them," I said, then bit my lip. _Stupid, stupid, stupid_...

"I have no doubt of that," Adrian said, then noticed the look of consternation on my face. "Are you ok?"

"I'm fine," I said, and buried my face in his shoulder.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"I'm sure," I said. "I just... want to sort of... cuddle up."

"Ah," he said. "That's definitely cool by me. Come here." We talked a little bit longer, mainly about when we'd meet again, deciding on the day after tomorrow. Then we both fell silent, and I lay snuggled up to him. I felt safe and warm, with his arm around my waist. My eyes slowly closed.

"Good night, Sydney," Adrian whispered, kissing my cheek. "Good night, and good morning."

I woke with a start.

I was in my bed. The sun was just rising, and Rick was snoring quietly on the other side of the bed. I ran my hand along the side of my face where Adrian had kissed me. "Don't be a wimp," I whispered to myself, under my breath. "You'll see him again soon enough. Now, go get dressed, Sydney."

I got through the day, finding a little time to work on the girls' costumes when no one was around.

The next morning was Halloween, and I woke up Violet a little earlier than usual. I helped her into a skirt and and a white blouse, then gave her a cardigan that matched the skirt perfectly. The effect was that of a woman's suit, complete with a blazer. Then I pinned a tiny American flag pin to her lapel. "There you are," I said, softly. "Do you know who you are now?"

"I'm President Gillibrand," Violet said, amazed. "I thought I wasn't allowed to have a costume, though."

"If anyone you know from church asks, you're just dressing up nice today because you have to go to a family function after school," I said. "Ok?"

"Ok," she said.

"Good," I said. "Now let's go wake up your sister."

As usual, Amy was hard to wake up, but when I pointed out the outfit I'd put together for her – black pants, a gray button down top, and a pair of black sneakers – and said she was going to be the President's secret service agent today, she sat up happily.

"Oh, wow," she said. "Vy-Vy, you look perfect." Violet flushed with pleasure. "Mom," Amy added, excited. "I should put my hair back in one of those tight ponytails."

"Exactly," I said. I held up a ponytail holder and a brush and we sat down to do her hair. She also wanted sunglasses and an earpiece, but I felt like that would be too obvious. Still, she was delighted with her "costume" and promised to be discreet about who she let in on the secret.

After a quick breakfast, I walked the girls to the bus, wanting to get them off to school before Rick saw them, just in case. Before they got on the bus, though, each of them gave me a tight hug, and Amy even told me that I was cool. I went back home, feeling on top of the world. And, amazingly, the day went just like I'd hoped it would. The girls didn't march in the parade, but they at least felt like they'd gotten to wear costumes to school, on a day when all the other kids wore costumes. Rick never found out, either. All I could do was thank God, or my lucky stars, or just fate, that I had Adrian back in my life, to make things so much better for me and my daughters.

* * *

November passed in a blur. I saw Adrian a few times a week, and somehow, knowing that he was part of my life made everything easier. I could bear Rick's insults because Adrian's compliments kept me mentally shielded. I had more energy to do things I needed to do – I even went for a jog every now and then, liking how it felt to use my body for something healthy, something that was just for me. I also found that I was more patient and more loving with my children now that I had a person to vent to, someone who seemed to accept me without question or judgment. It helped that Rick, convinced I really was pregnant, left me alone in bed as I dealt with my 'morning sickness.'

I sensed a subtle change in Adrian too as the month went on. He seemed more upbeat, more optimistic about his life and his abilities. He began talking more and more about his paintings, and I got the feeling that he was doing a lot more with his days than he had been before we started spending so much time together.

"I've been trying to write poetry," Adrian said one day, as we sat under some lemon trees in Sorrento, Italy, looking out over the coastline towards the Isle of Capri. We were holding hands. The lemons filled the warm air with their sweet, light scent.

"Really?" I said, drowsily. "That's a little surprising."

"I like poems," Adrian said. "Well, some of them. They're like... little paintings made of words."

"Hmm," I said. "I never would have thought to put it that way."

"Well, I like them," Adrian said. "And I've been trying to write some."

"What's kind?" I asked. "Sonnets? Haiku? Villanelles?"

"I like free verse," Adrian said. "Never was a fan of rules. Anyway, I'm sort of... taking a poetry class."

I tried to hide my surprise, not wanting to embarrass him. "Where?"

"Just a local thing," Adrian said. "Adult education class. We meet once a week, read some well known poetry together, and workshop each other's stuff."

"That's great," I said. "I'm really glad." He nodded, looking a little shy – and normally, "shy" and "Adrian" were two words that didn't belong in the same sentence. "So, what do you write about?"

"Besides you?" he asked, and I nodded. "Well, my great-aunt, sometimes," he said. "And my mom." Daniella Ivashkov was out of prison now, and she was readjusting to life in Moroi society, with mixed results. "A lot of the time, I write about the darkness..." He looked off in the distance, and I took his hand.

"Another outlet for that is good," I said. Then, in a brighter voice, I asked, "When can I read some of what you wrote?"

"Come over to my apartment," he said. "I'll let you read all of my poems."

"You know I can't do that," I said.

"Well, that's the deal," Adrian said. "You can see all my paintings, and read all my poems, but you have to come over to my place first."

I smiled slyly. "I've seen a bunch of your paintings already," I said. "I googled you. I found your website."

"Oh, is that so?" Adrian said, grinning. "What do you think of my work?"

"It's beautiful," I said. "I really love the 'Celery Stick' series."

"Yeah, thought you might like those. Any favorite?"

"Hmm," I said. "There was one..." I closed my eyes and called to mind a particular painting from the series – an impressionistic painting of a girl with blonde hair, her back to the viewer, holding a bouquet of celery sticks. For all that it should have been ridiculous, it wasn't. It was actually kind of arresting. When I opened my eyes, the painting I had been thinking of was sitting on an easel in front of us. "Did _I_ do that?" I asked, surprised.

"Yep," Adrian said. "Weren't you trying to?"

"I was trying to remember what it looked like," I said.

"Well, there you go," Adrian said. "You remembered. This is a dream space, Sage. When you think clearly about something, it appears."

I smirked, and Adrian looked down at himself. He was now wearing nothing but a pair of boxer briefs. "Cute," he said, and glanced down at my chest. I followed his gaze and saw that I was now wearing a satin negligee, much sexier than anything I'd ever picked out for myself.

"Really?" I said.

"Hey, it's fair," he said, and grinned. "Turnabout and all that. By the way, you have something on your lips."

"What?" I asked.

"Me," he said, and leaned forward. I hit him in the shoulder, but the truth was, I actually kind of liked his cheesy lines. No one else but Adrian could get away with them, of course, but ordinary rules just didn't seem to apply to him.

A little while later, when we'd settled back down and were wearing proper clothes again, I told Adrian about something that had been on my mind for a few days – a card I'd gotten in the mail the day before Thanksgiving. It had been from my father, and in it, he had invited me out to the house in Utah for Christmas.

"Are you going to go?" Adrian asked.

"No," I said, immediately. "At least, I'm pretty sure I won't."

"How is your dad?" Adrian asked. "Still an asshole?"

"Kind of," I said. "Well, it's hard to say. I mean, he seems to really love Amy and Violet. He's kinder to them than he ever was to me. He sends them gifts on their birthdays every year, and for Christmas, too – even though he always told _me_ that gifts on Christmas cheapen the meaning of the holiday. I don't know. For Amy's last birthday, he sent her a huge stuffed teddy-bear. The shipping costs alone must have been astronomical. It was about as big as a Shetland pony."

"I almost bought one of thse for a girl, once," he said. "But they cost a shit-ton and I finally just decided to buy myself a bottle of champagne instead." He winked at me. "Sounds like your dad is trying to buy your daughters' love."

"It's kind of working," I said. "They certainly _like_ him, at least. They video chat to him on their birthdays and stuff. To them, he's just a kindly Grampa. It's weird."

"When was the last time you saw him in person?"

"The day I left Utah, four years ago," I said, then sighed. "I don't know. Maybe I should go out there, after all. Carly says that Dad's gotten a little weird."

"Weird how?" Adrian asked, raising one eyebrow.

"He keeps the garage locked up like Fort Knox, apparently. He won't let Zoe or Carly in, or anyone else, for that matter. And he spends hours every day out there."

Adrian wrinkled his brow in thought. "What is he doing in there?"

"No clue," I said. "Probably just alchemist stuff. He's probably glad that mom's out of the way and he has her whole garage to work in."

"That can't be," Adrian said. "I mean, he's an asshole, sure, but he loved your mom – didn't he?"

I shrugged. "Maybe. I doubt it."

Adrian bit his lip thoughtfully. "I bet your dad and Rick get along like a house on fire."

"Well, they used to," I said. "Dad was the one who introduced me to Rick in the first place."

"What?" Adrian exclaimed. "That's super-creepy."

"Rick had seen me at church a bunch of times," I said. "He comes from an alchemist family, you know? Anyway, he thought I was pretty and stuff... I guess. Dad invited him over to the house at Christmas one year when I was home visiting, so I could meet him."

"What Christmas was that?" Adrian asked, leaning forward.

I looked down. "The Christmas right before I left Palm Springs," I said. "Um. Rick asked me to marry him the first night I met him. I remember thinking he was good-looking and nice enough, and that it was a romantic gesture, but I wasn't really interested. He was like ten years older than me, for one thing."

"So you said 'no,' right?"

"I did," I said. "But later on I... changed my mind."

"What changed your mind?"

"A lot of things," I said, knowing that it was a lie. It was only one thing. One really tiny thing. "I told you, I don't want to talk about this."

"Fine," Adrian said. "I have lots of other questions. For starters, you said that your dad and Rick _used_ to get along. They don't anymore?"

"Dad didn't appreciate it when Rick took the job that moved us out to... where we live now."

Adrian had given up on asking me where I lived, and just nodded. "But weren't you the one who suggested that?"

"Yeah," I said. "But Rick didn't quite know that. I sort of... manipulated him."

Adrian laughed. "Well done," he said. "Remind me not to get on your bad side."

"Don't get on my bad side," I said, with a grin, and kissed his cheek to let him know I was only joking. "Anyway, Dad blamed Rick for me moving away, and – get this – he thinks that Rick is too hard on Amy."

Adrian let out a startled exclamation, then sputtered, "Does he hear himself talking?"

I shrugged. "I don't know. But after Amy video chatted with him last Christmas, Dad called Rick and talked him into letting Amy take gymnastics. Rick thought gymnastics were too... oh, I don't even know what was supposed to be wrong with gymnastics."

"Probably they're too fun," Adrian said.

"Right," I said, and sighed. "So I guess I have Dad to thank for that. Amy was thrilled. She'd rather be taking karate or something now, but I don't hold out much hope for that."

"Invite me over," Adrian said. "I could have a little chat with Rick. I could talk him into anything you want me to talk him into."

"Compulsion doesn't work long term," I said. "He'd agree to it at the moment, then after a week or two, he'd withdraw his support."

"Fine," Adrian said, sulking a little.

"Anyway, how was your Thanksgiving?" I asked. "You never told me."

"Let the record show that I noticed you changing the subject and decided to let you," Adrian said. "Because I'm a super nice guy."

"So noted," I said.

"I actually took your advice," he said. "I went to an early dinner with Mom and Dad, and then dropped by Rose's place afterward."

Before he had talked to me about it, Adrian had been planning to spend Thanksgiving at Rose's, ignoring his parents. I was glad that he was at least trying to mend fences with them. "That's great," I said.

"Everyone was there – the whole gang. Kind of awkward to have Jill and Eddie in the same room, with all that's gone down between them, but they get along for all our sakes. Though let me say, Rose's kids are exhausting, even if Dimitri does a pretty good job keeping them in line. Cole is almost 8, and Zach is 6 and a half. Weirdly enough, Zach is actually taller than Cole. Doesn't seem fair, does it?"

"Bet Zach enjoys it," I said, and laughed.

"You know," Adrian said. "Rose's kids are about the same age as yours. Amy's 8, right?"

"Right," I said, crossing my fingers behind my back.

"And Violet is 6?"

"Yes, she is."

"Well... wouldn't it be fun to introduce them? I wonder if they'd get along."

"Are you planning an arranged marriage or something?"

"Not exactly... but wouldn't it be... you know, cute?"

I sighed. "But Rose's children are dhampirs," I said.

"Got something against dhampirs?" Adrian said, and grinned.

"Not any more," I said. "But I'm pretty sure most dhampirs don't date humans."

"They don't, but did you just say, 'not any more'?"

I ran my hands through my hair. "After all the time I've spent with you, not to mention Rose, Eddie, Jill, Sonya, Mikhail, Dimitri, even Angeline – do you really think that I think that you guys are evil at this point?"

Adrian shrugged. "I don't know," he said, looking at me intently. "_Do_ you?"

"Not any more," I murmured, and took his hands. "When you've seen evil up close and personal, like I have, you know it looks nothing like Adrian Ivashkov. Or Rose or Eddie or Dimitri, for that matter."

"But you still sort of think it's wrong for you and me to be together," he said, still watching my face carefully.

I took a deep breath. "I'm still married," I said softly. "And I don't see how that can change. But if I weren't married... I think it wouldn't be any more wrong for me to date you than it was for me to have married Rick. I think that if God loved me at all, he'd want me to be happy." I blinked away a few tears. "And you make me happy."

"You make _me_ happy," Adrian said, and pulled me close.

We sat close together for a while, then, silently, watching the sun set over the turquoise Adriatic Sea, Adrian's arm around my shoulders.

* * *

"Rick's going out of town again this weekend," I said, being careful not to move too much. It was mid-December, and Adrian was painting portraits of me, in a huge, sunlit studio. I had a feeling that in real life the sunlight would be causing a problem for my Moroi paramour, but here, in the dream, it wasn't a concern.

"Awesome," Adrian said, painting away. "You can go to bed really early and sleep really late." He leaned around the easel to wink at me. "How long will he be gone?"

"He's leaving tomorrow morning, and he's coming back on Monday night."

"Fantastic. I'll think of some really fun places to go tomorrow night. Maybe Pompeii – would you like that?"

"Of course," I said. "I've always dreamed of seeing Pompeii."

"And now you will dream of seeing it, literally," Adrian said, with a laugh, then put his paintbrush down. "There! Done!" He turned the painting around so I could see it. It was me, just as I'd posed, but with significantly less clothing on.

"Hey!" I said, in mock outrage.

He grinned. "Let me put it with the others." He got up and carried the canvas over to where the other paintings he'd made that night were all on display. This was the fifth one so far. Each one only took a few minutes, here in the dream. I struck another pose, thinking of the Roman statues that had once decorated Pompeii, and my clothes changed into a toga.

"I love that," Adrian said. "Perfect. Don't move." He began painting enthusiastically. "So, where's he going on this business trip?"

"I don't know," I said. "Atlanta, I think."

"You think?"

I shrugged, then remembered to be a statue. "I guess he has to go interview some witnesses or something," I said.

Adrian snickered. "Oh, is _that_ what they're calling it now?" He made big air quotes as he repeated, "_Interviewing witnesses_."

"What do you mean?" I asked, puzzled.

"Sage, my sweet girl. Has it ever occurred to you that Rick might be having an affair?"

"No way," I said. "He takes his vows seriously."

Adrian put his paintbrush down, and I relaxed my pose. He held up his hand and began ticking off the points one at a time on his fingers. "He works late, right?"

"Well, yeah, but – "

"Goes out of town a lot?"

"Yes, but that's – "

"Isn't exactly a good, trustworthy person?"

"Obviously, but – "

"When he gets home after he's been working late, does he go straight into the shower?"

I had a memory of Rick sliding into bed next to me, smelling of soap. In fact, I had several memories like that. "I guess he has done that..."

Adrian raised his eyebrows. "Isn't at least _that_ sort of suspicious?"

"I didn't think about it," I said. "I guess I was just so relieved that..." I trailed off. I had been about to say that I was glad that Rick hadn't expected sex on those occasions that I hadn't taken the time to wonder why he had showered. But discussing my marital sex life was too... weird. I had managed to hide my last period from Rick, and was still keeping up the charade of occasional nausea, but sooner or later, I'd have to fake a miscarriage and go back to normal. "I was relieved that he had stayed out so late," I finished, lamely.

If Adrian noticed my substitution, he didn't say anything about it. He just picked up his paintbrush again, and I got back into my pose. "Well, it's classic. He's having an affair."

I thought about it. Rick was a good looking guy. He could be charming when he wanted to be. He made good money. I could see a woman finding him attractive. But it was still hard to imagine him having some sort of romance, or even a sexual affair, because those things didn't seem like the major motivating factors in his life. I shrugged. "Maybe he is," I said. "I don't care."

"But if he is, then you should feel free to do whatever you want to do with me," Adrian said. "If Rick already broke your vows, then you should feel free to do the same."

"Maybe," I said, considering it. "I don't know. Besides, there's no proof that he's done anything like that."

"But – "

"I don't want to talk about Rick," I said. "The reason I brought it up is that I wanted to talk about my plans for the weekend."

"But Sydney," Adrian said. "It's important –"

"So are my weekend plans," I said, firmly.

Adrian sighed. "Something fun planned?" he asked.

"Yes," I said, smiling. "Want to hear about it?"

"Nothing I'd like better," Adrian said, resigned, as he put his paintbrush down and turned the painting around. There I was, only gray now, and made of stone. The background behind me was that of an ancient temple, and a small figure with messy brown hair knelt at my feet.

"Is that you, at the statue's feet?" I asked.

"Who else?" Adrian said. He moved the painting over with the others and returned to his easel, where another canvas was already waiting. "I'm going to paint that one for real when I wake up," he added. "So, what _are_ your plans for the weekend? I actually do want to know." He gave me a wan smile.

"Well, ok, listen to this. Rick sort of... banned Christmas in our house. The church's stance is that Jesus is ok, but Santa and Christmas trees are not. It gets worse every year."

"That sucks," Adrian said, with feeling.

"Yes, it does," I said. "And Christmas is only a week and a half away. So I thought it'd be fun to take the girls to... another city... and shop a little, buy some presents, see Santa and a big tree, that kind of thing." I figured that Washington, DC – a three hour drive from our town – would be far enough from home to keep us from being spotted by any other church members. And what could be more exciting than seeing the national Christmas tree, the one we'd watched President Gillibrand lighting on TV just a few days ago?

"Sounds like a nice day," Adrian said, nodding. "What else are you going to do?"

"Oh," I said. "Sightseeing. It'll be educational." I smiled, picturing it – the girls seeing a little of the the Smithsonian museums, maybe the Washington Monument, things like that. "Then after we get home, we can wrap our presents, go to bed, and have Christmas morning the next day."

"Perfect," Adrian said, in a distracted voice. He was staring down at his canvas now. "Fun, and educational."

"Are you ok?" I asked.

"Oh, yes," he said. He looked up at me with bright eyes. "I've got your pose. This one's easy. You can sit down." He gestured to a chair that hadn't been there a moment ago, and I sat. "It sounds like a fun weekend, sweetheart," he said, as he began painting again. "But all I can think about is how much I fucking hate your husband and want to punch him in the face."

I noticed a soft bathrobe hanging over the edge of the chair, and I put it on over my toga. "I said I didn't want to talk about him," I said.

"That's what you always say when I say I want to punch him," he said. "Are we ever going to talk about the fact that you're married to a lying, cheating, sociopathic dirtbag? And that this can't go on forever?"

"By 'this,' do you mean... us? That we can't go on forever?" I asked.

"God no, Sydney," Adrian said, dropping his paintbrush. "You and I can go on for as long as you'll have me. But I don't want you to be with that guy any longer than you have to be. And someday, sooner or later, this is going to have to change. But I'll drop the topic now, since you asked me to." He waved at the easel with a flourish, then turned it around for me to see. The painting showed me, wearing the same bathrobe I was wearing now, watching two little girls opening presents by a roaring fire.

"It looks like such a nice scene," I said.

"I just paint what I see," Adrian said, smiling. "And speaking of that..."

I looked down. I was wearing a pretty skimpy bikini all of a sudden.

"I see you," Adrian said, and advanced on me, can of paint in hand. "And I want to paint you."

"But your canvas is back there," I said.

"Yes," Adrian said. "It is." He dipped his finger into the paint.

"_Ohhhh_," I said. "Um... won't this get messy?"

"Yes, I think it will," Adrian said. "I'll have to give you a hot bath afterward." He gestured to an old fashioned bathtub behind us – though I was fairly certain that it hadn't been there a few minutes ago.

"But..." I said.

"Don't worry," Adrian growled, near my ear. "We don't have to have sex. I mean, not technically." He grinned, then licked my neck.

"Right," I murmured. Then I found words pretty much unnecessary for a long while. Adrian's fingers on my skin were electric, and the feel of his mouth on mine was intoxicating. I was thinking that I really should tell him how much I loved him when a horrible noise began reverberating through the art studio, and Adrian dissolved right from under me...

… And Rick was irritably whining at me to turn off my alarm clock. "What's wrong with you?" he said, rolling back over. "It's like you didn't want to wake up or something."

I squinted at the alarm clock. It was 5 am. I remembered that I had promised Rick I'd get up to make breakfast for him and see him off. "I was having a nice dream," I said. Then, despite my annoyance at having been woken up, I began grinning like an idiot as I went into the bathroom to take a brief, but very hot, shower.

I made Rick some breakfast, then helped him get his suitcases out to the car. He gave me a perfunctory kiss on the cheek, and I waved goodbye to him as he drove away. Then I went back inside and up the stairs to wake up the girls with the promise of an adventure.

Violet jumped out of bed at the words, but Amy was a little harder to wake up – it _was_ only a few minutes after 6. I had to promise her a trip to McDonald's for breakfast to get her to move. Soon, we were out in the car, and I was programing the GPS with the coordinates of a shopping mall in DC.

"Should we tell Daddy about this?" Violet asked, as we settled into the station wagon. She sounded doubtful.

"No," I said. "He won't understand."

"Cool," Amy said, and Violet nodded.

The drive was fun, even if it was more than three hours long. We hit the The McDonald's drive-through first thing, which was an almost unheard of treat. The girls were delighted to eat the food they'd heard their friends at school talk about for so long. Once we were done eating, we sang all the Christmas songs we knew, even The Twelve Days of Christmas – though we did make up our own words to it. When that got old, I put in a DVD of a Christmas movie that I'd borrowed from the library, and the girls watched it, expressions rapt. When the movie was over, we were getting closer to the city, and the girls grew more interested in the urban landscape. I explained to the girls that at the shopping mall, I'd give them each some money to buy presents for me and for each other, which we'd exchange when we got home, before Rick came back from his trip. They were delighted, and began tentatively trying to find out what the other one wanted, and whispering together about what to get me.

When we arrived at the mall, we spent a while just walking around, looking at the shoppers and dipping into different stores. Then stopped to have a snack at the food court. After that, I bought Amy and Violet each a pretty dress and a new pair of pajamas, so that they'd have something to wear to our Christmas festivities. They asked to change into their dresses right away, and we went to the ladies room to accomplish that particular goal. I even French braided their hair so they'd feel a little fancier.

Then Violet said that she wanted to see Santa and the tree, and Amy casually agreed, so we made our way to the section of the mall where we could find the Christmas display. To our disappointment, the line to meet Santa was far too long, and we had to settle for seeing him through the crowd. I took us to the edge of the viewing area, so we could watch the other children take their turns sitting in Santa's lap.

"I can't see," Violet said, her voice almost a whine. I picked her up and tried to hold her above the crowd, but I couldn't get much heft on her. She was too big now.

"Can I help you?" asked a familiar voice to my left. I froze, then lowered Violet to the ground.

All three of us turned to look at the source of the voice. It was a tall, pale man in a gorgeous tailored suit. His dark hair was styled neatly, and his green eyes shone brightly even in the awful mall lighting. My heart stopped in my chest. Violet squeezed my hand tighter and clung to my arm, but when I didn't speak, Amy took a step forward bravely.

"Are you a stranger?" she asked. "We're not supposed to talk to strangers."

"I'm not a stranger," Adrian said, smiling pleasantly. "I'm an old friend of your mom's." He looked over at me, but I was still frozen. He looked back at my older daughter. "And you must be Amy, am I right?"

"We should go," I said, snapping to life enough to speak. "We have a lot of shopping to do."

Amy turned to look at me. "He knows my name, Mom," she said. "So he's not a stranger."

"It's great to see you, Sydney," Adrian said. "What are the odds we'd both be here today?"

Violet said something very quietly for her sister's ears, and Amy giggled. Adrian turned his head to the side. He had heard Violet's words, too, and when Violet realized that, she blushed scarlet.

"Thank you," Adrian said. "I think you're very beautiful, too." He bent over so he'd be at eye level with her, then held out his hand. "You're Violet, right?" She nodded mutely and took his hand. "It's wonderful to meet you, fair maiden," he said. "My name is Adrian."

Amy let out a little gasp, then covered her mouth with her hand. She turned to look at me with wide eyes. I nodded, then managed to put a finger to my lips in the symbol for silence.

Violet shook hands with Adrian with great ceremony, the blush not subsiding a bit. She continued to stare at him, eyes wide and shining, as he complimented her new dress and turned to greet Amy. Violet's blush reminded me that she took after her mother in more than just appearance.

"And you, Lady Amaryllis," Adrian said, with a slight bow. "I've heard that you are a scholar, and an athlete, and a rescuer of turtles in danger. It's an honor to meet you." He gave her his hand, and when she took it, I saw his body tense. At the moment of contact, he _knew,_ in that indefinable way that Moroi just _knew_ these things_. _

He knew the secret about Amy that even she didn't know.

He knew that she was a dhampir.


	6. Let Me Have This Moment

**Chapter 6: Let Me Have This Moment**

Adrian paused, one hand slightly extended towards Amy. She stared up at him, a quizzical look in her bright green eyes, those eyes that matched his perfectly.

Time slowed for me, stopped, then went backward, as memories from ten years ago flooded my mind.

* * *

The law that required all Moroi kings or queens to have at least one family member had finally been modified, which meant that Jill was no longer in danger. The alchemists had decided to shut down operations in Palm Springs, and while Jill had decided to stay at Amberwood and finish out her year, I was no longer obligated to help her. She had Eddie and Angeline to help her, after all, and Adrian showed no signs of leaving either.

But I had made the decision to leave. It was getting to be too much. Seeing Adrian so often, hearing his promises and proclamations and protestations... I felt like I was losing my sanity. Since I couldn't get Adrian out of my mind, I decided to at least get him out of my life. I knew that I would miss him, but that sooner or later, I would find myself back to normal, and my true path. And maybe I could date a normal human guy. They couldn't _all_ bore me to tears, right?

So I had asked the alchemists to find me a new post, which they agreed to do, in recognition of my excellent service in Palm Springs. And on one surprisingly cold day the first week of January, just a few days after I got back from my Christmas visit to Utah, I got my final permission to leave. I formally withdrew from Amberwood, said goodbye to Ms. Terwiliger and my classmates, exchanged goodbye hugs with Eddie, Jill, and Angeline, and packed up my car with my clothes and stuff.

As I started up the car, I told myself that I was doing the right thing. I had to get away from this dangerous place before I got any more lost from my true mission, which was protecting the human race from interaction with Moroi. They were... evil. Or at least, different. I turned out towards the interstate, wondering how far I'd get on my drive to Utah before I had to stop for the night. But something was nagging at me. There was someone I hadn't said goodbye to.

I thought about just texting him, or sending him an email. But somehow, instead of getting onto the interstate, I found myself driving the familiar route to Adrian's house. "This is a bad idea," I muttered to myself as I parked the car. "Don't do this," I told myself, as I walked down to the hallway to his door. "Stop stop stop stop stop," I whispered under my breath, as I paused in front of his door. But I knocked anyway.

Adrian answered the door in a pair of black boxer briefs and a white tank top, the kind I've heard called a "wife beater." He had some colorful splatters on his face and hands and I could smell paint. "Wow, hi," he said, a big smile spreading across his face. "Come in, come in, come in." He stood to the side, holding the door open.

"I can't come in," I said. "I just came to say something really quickly..."

"I can't just stand in the hallway in my underwear, Sage," he said. "I might get arrested. Come on, get inside."

Kicking myself mentally, I stepped inside the apartment.

The heat was cranked up high, and I had to take off my coat immediately. I put it, and my purse, down by the door, then turned around to see what what he was working on. He was in the middle of yet another painting of me. Or at least, I had to _assume_ it was a painting of me. It was really more of a suggestion of a person – a kind of surreal swirl of yellows and purples. "_Sydney Number Eight_," he said, gesturing at the canvas. "One of my better efforts, I think."

"I'm sorry to bother you so late," I said, ignoring the painting. "So, um, did Jill or Eddie call you?"

"I've had my phone off," he said. "Painting frenzy."

I wasn't sure if that made things easier or harder. I just pressed on. "Well," I said. "I came here to say goodbye."

Adrian's face froze mid-expression, then he offered me a tentative and confused smile. "Goodbye?" he said. "Are you going somewhere?"

"Home," I said. "Utah."

"What?" he said, his eyes growing wider. "You just got back from there."

"That was only a Christmas visit," I said. "This is..."

"Why are you going?" Adrian interrupted me to ask. "When are you coming back?"

"You know as well as I do that the danger is past," I said. "Jill doesn't need me. Job's over. I'm going home."

"For... forever?"

"I'm not coming back," I confirmed. "I'm going home for good."

"I don't understand," he said. "Why? We were having fun. I thought the alchemists had given you an actual post here. You weren't really here for Jill anymore anyway."

"It has been fun," I said. "But it's not good for me to be here." I shook my head helplessly. "I have to go, Adrian. Don't you understand that? This place isn't healthy for me."

"The paint fumes?" he said. "I can open a window. You don't have to go to Utah."

"That's not what I meant, and you know it," I said. "I meant... this. You." I gestured between the two of us. "This... thing."

"Oh," said Adrian, nodding wisely. "You're talking about the whole, I'm-in-love-with-you-and-you-think-that's-bad thing. I don't see how it's a problem for _you_, though."

"It's just confusing," I said. "Confusing and dangerous. I can't date a Moroi. It's wrong."

"Then don't date me," Adrian said, cheerfully. "You don't have to go back to _Utah_."

"I'm better at a safe distance from you," I said. "Trust me. It's better this way. And it's better for you, too. You'll get over me faster if I'm not around."

"You're serious, aren't you," Adrian said. "You're really going."

"Car is all packed," I said. "Next stop: Utah."

"You'll probably stop for coffee or something first," Adrian said.

"Well, yeah," I said.

There was a long pause, as Adrian and I regarded each other. Then I gave him a little wave and took one step toward the door. But Adrian stood in my path, arms crossed.

"I'm never going to get over you, you know," he said. "So don't worry about that. It's a lost cause. You might as well stay."

"I can't do that," I said. "I already withdrew from Amberwood, checked out of the dorms, said goodbye to everyone..."

"So? You can stay with me if you need a place to stay. You can unpack here."

I rolled my eyes at him. "Like that's a good idea."

"It's a great idea," he said, and took a step towards me. "I'll sleep on the couch. Until you invite me into the bed, of course..." I rolled my eyes again, and his expression changed, darkened. "Seriously, Sydney. Please. Don't go."

"I have to," I said. "I... want to wish you the best." I held out my hand for him to shake.

He took my hand, but then pulled me into an embrace. "I'm not saying goodbye to you with a handshake," he said, in a near growl, then pressed his lips to mine.

Instantly, the world fell away. I was wrapped in the feeling, the touch, the scent of him. I had promised myself that if Adrian ever kissed me again, I wouldn't kiss him back, but all those pledges went out the window when I actually felt his lips against mine. When we finally broke apart, I honestly wasn't sure if we had been kissing for 30 seconds or 30 minutes. I felt dizzy and confused.

"Ok, well, um, I better go," I said, and began my unsteady progress to the door. But when I got there, Adrian was blocking the way.

"Explain something before you go," he said. "Explain why it's dangerous to be around me. And don't say it's confusing," he added quickly, as I opened my mouth to say just that. "What is so dangerous about me?"

With him so near, it seemed completely obvious what was so dangerous about him. His eyes. His lips. His scent. He was like the fruit the serpent had handed Eve, so wonderful to smell, so desirable to see, so lovely to touch, so completely forbidden. I wanted to just _bite_ him. Not in a vampire sense or anything but... almost. Almost.

I looked down at the cheap throw rug on his floor. "There's nothing dangerous about you," I whispered.

"But you said there was. You said it was dangerous to be around me." He stepped closer to me. "Why? Are you afraid I'll bite you?"

"You wouldn't do that," I said.

"Then how am I dangerous?" He took another step closer. "Let me ask you something, Sage. Do you feel at all the same about me as I do about you? Even a little?"

"Of course not," I said.

"Then why did you kiss me back? Tonight, and other times?"

"I'm not made of stone," I said, dismissively. "It doesn't mean what you think it means."

"But here's the problem, Sage," Adrian said. "If you don't want me or love me, then what would be so dangerous about me wanting you and loving you? You could just sit around in your dorm room and laugh at the poor Moroi who's lost his mind about you. You could take it as a compliment and move on. You wouldn't have to go back to Utah."

"Yes, but..." I said, but Adrian interrupted me again.

"The only way this little maneuver of yours makes even an _ounce_ of sense is if you feel something for me." He took another step closer and grabbed my hand. "Something strong." He brushed my hand with his lips. "Something that you can't fight any more."

"I don't..." I said, and trailed off. He had taken another step, even closer. He was inches away now. "I have to go."

"Ok," he said, leaning forward. "Give me a kiss goodbye, then." And he was pressed up against me again, one hand against the small of my back, one hand running through my hair. His lips went to my neck and I let out an involuntary sigh as a shiver of delight went through me. He was kissing me, not biting me, but still, it was almost like when the Strigoi had bitten me. There was no thought, no fear, no doubt, just absolute delight and a deep desire for this to continue, on and on, forever. I didn't know it was possible to feel like this from only a kiss. Small, weird animal noises escaped my throat. I began to sway on my feet. When he pulled away from me, he held me upright in his arms, as if he knew that I might have fallen over without the support.

"I... have... to go," I stammered. "I, um, have to..."

"Don't go," Adrian murmured, near my ear. "Don't. Please, Sydney. Whatever you're afraid of, we can face it together. We can go as slow as you want. We can just stay friends if that's what you really, really, want. But please, please, please, don't go back to Utah. I'll miss you so much."

"I'll miss you too," I said. My blood was singing in my veins. I felt like I was drunk, or had been drunk from. I couldn't think straight, couldn't even come up with a decent lie.

"Then don't go," he whispered again, and there was a weird, sharp quality to his voice. "Please," he said. "Don't leave. I'll do anything you want if you just stay in Palm Springs. This can't be the last time I ever see you."

"It has to be," I said, and unaccountably, felt tears rise to my eyes. "We have to say goodbye. This is unnatural. This is... wrong."

"Then why does it feel so good?" he asked, and kissed me again. It was a stronger kiss, a fiercer one, and I felt my pulse increase. My hands rose, as if out of my control, to stroke his back, to pull his shirt up to I could touch the bare skin. He bent to kiss my neck again, and I let out a high pitched little moan. It was impossible not to, as sort of embarrassing as it was. It just felt that good.

"The … devil... has a... power," I managed to gasp, "to … assume... a pleasing... ohhh... shape."

"Are you saying I'm the devil, or that _you_ are?" he growled. "Because you have a really pleasing shape." One hand rested on my left breast.

"Neither of us is the devil," I whispered. "But this is still a temptation. It's... still wrong."

"Love isn't wrong," Adrian said, near my ear. "It can't be wrong to love you. I know that."

Somewhere in my head, something chimed in agreement. Love... how could love be wrong? Even love between a human and a Moroi? Surely God would understand. If we really loved each other...

_No, _I told myself firmly. _As soon as I can manage to stop this, I'll have to leave and never look back. I can't have this. I can't have this. I can't... _

"I really do love you," Adrian whispered. "I know I say it so much you must think I'm joking or something. But I'm completely dead serious. I've never, ever felt like this about anyone. It makes how I felt about Rose seem like a kindergarten crush. I just... oh, God, Sydney, there isn't another way to say it. I just _love_ you."

"I know," I whispered, and leaned forward so that our lips met. I knew he loved me. And so help me, I loved him back. I knew it, in that instant. I knew that I loved him as much as he loved me. I loved his sharp wit, his crazy sense of humor, his loyalty, his sweetness wrapped in an exterior of charisma and snark. I loved his mind, his body, and his heart. That's what made the thing I had to do all the worse.

_God? _I thought. _Let me just have this for a few more moments. Please. After this, I'll be good. I promise. I'll be a good little alchemist. I'll leave Palm Springs and I'll recommit to the church and everything. I'll live a life of service to You. But please. Just let me have this, for a few more moments. I need this, just for a little while. You understand, don't you? Please, God, please. _

I pulled away and looked at Adrian. He stroked my cheek with his fingertips. "Why are you crying?" he asked. "Am I making you cry?"

"No," I said, and shook my head to emphasize it. "No, you're not."

"I am," he said, emotion making his voice tremble a little. "Please, Sydney, don't cry. I'll stop all of this. I... won't push it. If you have to leave, I'll try to understand. Just don't cry."

"I'm not crying," I said, and I leaned forward again, so that our lips met again. I arched my neck a little, so that he'd kiss it again, and then my hand crept under the waistband of his boxers.

"S-Syd-Sydney," he breathed. "Oh, wow. I so didn't expect... that..."

"Let's go to your room," I said, in a voice I almost didn't recognize.

"We... don't have to... you know," he whispered, gently pulling my hand away. "There's no rush. We have the rest of our lives, Sydney. We have all the time in the world."

This made the tears flood my eyes, and I buried my face in his shoulder. No, I thought, desperately. We don't. We only have now. But you don't know that. "I don't want to wait," I said, in as normal a voice as I could muster. "Life is short."

"Oh, god, Sydney, how did I get so lucky?" he whispered, and picked me up in his arms. Still kissing, we made it down the hall to his room. He placed me down gently in his bed and we kissed for a long time, not saying a word, just engulfed in each other. I pulled my shirt off over my head, then he expertly unhooked my bra. When he kissed my breasts I had to bite on my own hand to keep from moaning too loudly. Every inch of my skin wanted nothing more than his caresses, his kisses. Impatiently, I peeled off my jeans and underwear, not wanting to delay it. I just wanted to give him complete access to my body. "Are you sure?" he whispered, again. "Are you completely sure, Sydney? I can do other things for you... It doesn't have to be..."

"I'm sure," I whispered, cutting him off. "I want you." I kissed him again, harder than ever, biting the side of his lip a little.

His fingers trailed down between my legs, gently stroking me. "I don't want to hurt you," he breathed. "It's the last thing I want."

"I know," I whispered. "It's ok."

He played with me, kissed me, teased me. When I finally couldn't take another second of waiting, he slid inside of me very slowly. He never stopped kissing me, stroking my hair, telling me how beautiful I was and how much he loved me. I hadn't thought that I was going to climax, not on my first time, not under circumstances like these, but Adrian knew what he was doing, and he brought me right to the edge and helped me over. I surprised myself with the volume of my moans, the strange, almost non-human sounds I made. I would never have guessed that sex would be like this. And, as I lay in his arms afterward, I felt certain it would never be like this again.

"Oh, wow, Sydney," he said. "Just wow. If it's that good the first time, can you imagine the second time, the third time? It's just going to keep getting better." He crawled out of bed to wrap the condom in tissues and throw it away.

I quickly wiped my eyes with the sheet while his back was turned. "I can imagine," I said, as he lay back down in the bed with me.

"I'm so glad you changed your mind," Adrian said, pulling me close. "I've never been so happy, Sydney. With you in my life, I just feel like everything is going to be perfect."

"That's saying a lot," I said, trying not to let the tears become audible.

"But it _will_ be perfect," Adrian said. "And I'll do everything I can to make it perfect for you, too, Sydney. I swear. I'll be the best boyfriend on Earth. I'll take good care of you, not that you need that, but... still. I'll take care of you."

"I know," I said. I turned on my side and pulled Adrian's arm around me like a blanket. We snuggled together like spoons. And for a while, we dozed.

I woke up a few hours later because of a funny feeling inside of me. It was hard to explain. It was a... fluttering. A redistribution of energy. I knew what it was, though there was no way I _could_ know. Maybe Ms. Terwiliger had always been right about me, that I had more magic in me than I was willing to admit to. But I knew. I knew that there was a tiny fertilized egg inside of me right now, looking for a place to implant itself and begin growing.

I lay completely motionless in the bed, Adrian's arms still around me. Something had gone wrong with the condom, obviously. Either it had slipped off for a second, or it had broken, or... something. But this didn't have to be the end of the world. There was still time to prevent a pregnancy. I knew of alchemist technology that could keep the egg from finding a home and growing, preventing true conception from taking place.

The problem, though, was that I didn't want to do that. If this egg grew into a baby – and a lot of zygotes didn't actually take root, for whatever reason, so it was quite possible that it wouldn't – it would be half Adrian, half me. And I didn't want to let it go. _I wanted it_. I loved it as much as I loved Adrian, with a totally different, but still overwhelming, kind of love. A fierce love. An almost violent one.

For a moment, I allowed myself the luxury of imagining life with Adrian, me, and the baby. We'd get married and make a home and a life. Every day would be better than the previous one. I'd leave the alchemists and have a normal life, fixing cars, reading the newspaper, cuddling with my husband and child.

But it could never happen, I knew. If I stayed with Adrian, I'd never get to see my family again. I'd have to give up everything I'd ever worked for. The church would kick me out. And it'd be no picnic for Adrian, either. He would probably be almost as ostracized as I would be, as even his closest friends would think that our relationship was disgusting and immoral. We'd have nothing – no friends, no support. Even God would turn His back on us. It's possible my family would kidnap me and send me to a reeducation center and I'd forget everything about my husband and baby. Maybe Adrian would give up on us, choosing to go back to his easy life back at court rather than fight anymore.

And no matter what, the baby would suffer, I felt sure of it. My child would be a dhampir, and dhampirs weren't well treated in Moroi society. He or she might be pressured into working as a Guardian and die protecting some Moroi royal from a Strigoi. And the whole time, even other dhampirs would find my child's parentage strange, since outside of the Keepers, all dhampirs were born of a union between a Moroi and dhampir. I placed my hand on my belly, though there was nothing there yet to feel. My poor baby, I thought. Scared. Alienated. Unloved by anyone but me and Adrian... and maybe even unloved by us, if life intervened as I feared it might. I had to protect this baby, as surely as I had to protect myself and Adrian from the consequences of this love and this night.

I slid out of Adrian's arms, then tip-toed around the room collecting my clothes. Every time Adrian stirred, I froze. It took me almost a half hour to get dressed and tiptoe out of the apartment. I had made it all the way down to the parking area and was unlocking my car before the tears began. Once I was safely in the front seat, I put my head in my hands and sobbed.

When I was finally able to pull myself together, I started up the car. I took a few turns, stopped for coffee at a drive through fast-food place, and kept going. Soon I was on the interstate, heading for Utah. I drove through the night, tears streaming down my face. I could only think of one solution now. And that solution was named Rick.

* * *

Adrian turned and looked at me, and when our eyes met, I knew he was remembering that night, too. He stayed absolutely still, though by now it must have gotten uncomfortable to be crouching like that. Then he looked back into the face of a little dhampir girl with his eyes, and pulled his face into a smile. He slowly rose to his feet, and seemed to mentally shake himself. "It really is an honor to meet both of you," he said, in a shaky voice. "I've heard great things about you."

"It's um, nice to meet you, too," Amy said. "Who are you, again?"


	7. Moment of Truth

**Chapter 7: Moment of Truth**

Amy studied Adrian's face with curiosity and interest.

He swallowed hard, then took a deep breath. "I'm an old friend of your mother's," he said, just as he had a minute ago. I saw him working to keep his expression under control as he smiled at her. He started to say something, cut himself off, and then turned to Violet. "So," he asked her, in a kind, friendly voice. "How old are you? Seven, eight?"

"Six," she said, shyly.

"No way," Adrian said, shaking his head, in emphatic disbelief. "You're _much_ too grown up. When is your birthday?"

"January 18th," she whispered, beaming in happiness from being called "grown up."

"Well, that explains it," Adrian said, cheerfully. "You're not six. You're almost seven." He turned to face Amy. "And you? What are you, ten?"

She shook her head. "I'm nine," she said.

"Nine?" Adrian repeated. "That's interesting. I feel like someone told me you were eight."

"No way," she said. "I turned nine in September."

I could almost see the wheels turning in Adrian's head as he counted back in time. He turned and looked at me again. I gave an almost imperceptible nod of my head, and it was Adrian's turn to look down at the ground. He took a few deep breaths while Violet and Amy examined him in silence.

"Well," Adrian said, a moment later. "Did you girls come here to see Santa?"

"It's just a myth," Violet said, confident all of a sudden. She always was when she had information to impart. "My daddy told me it's a way to take Christ out of Christmas. But my mommy says it's a nice myth. Like the Greek gods."

"Hmm," said Adrian. "I personally think Santa's a lot of fun. Did you two want to get a better look at him?" He held out his hands, signaling his willingness to pick someone up. Violet nodded, shy again, and stepped forward. Adrian picked her up and held her in the air for a moment so that she could get a good look at Santa. When he put her down, she was smiling and giggling. He turned to Amy, who sadly shook her head 'no.'

"I'm too big to pick up," she said. "My Dad says so."

"Well, let me be the judge of that," Adrian said. "I'm willing to try if you want."

She stepped forward a little hesitantly, and Adrian lifted her straight up off the ground and held her in the air for about five seconds, long enough for her to see Santa. Then he put her down and made a show of dabbing his face, as if to wipe off sweat, while she giggled. But I saw him stare down at her, wonder and disbelief writ large on his face.

"Thanks, Adrian," I said, in a voice that sounded foreign to my own ears. "I'm sure they really appreciate it." The polite phrase was so inadequate somehow, but I had no idea what I should actually be saying. He still wouldn't meet my eyes.

"Thank you," the girls said in unison.

Adrian waved off the thanks. "It was my pleasure," he said. "And now that I've had my workout for the day, I kind of want a treat. Do you girls like ice cream, by any chance?" Both of them assured him that they did. "Well, if your mother thinks it's ok, I would love to buy you each a really outrageous and unnecessarily large ice cream sundae over there." He gestured at an ice cream parlor a few stores away.

"We just ate," I said.

"But it's _ice cream_," Amy said. "Can we, Mom, please?"

"Please?" Violet echoed. "_Pleeeeeeease_?"

It was impossible to say 'no' to those faces, even if part of me wanted to run as far from Adrian as I could get. "Of course," I said. "Today is all about treats. Let's go."

The girls cheered. Then, to my surprise, each took one of Adrian's hands, just as if they'd known him all their lives, and began almost dragging him towards the ice cream parlor. He laughed and let himself be dragged, making a big deal out of how strong they were.

There was a long line at the door, but Adrian whispered something to the hostess (and, I think, slipped her a pretty big tip), and we were seated quickly. As we walked past the line of waiting families, several people wondered out loud what was so special about us that we were allowed to cut the line. As we walked two-by-two through the restaurant –Violet still with her death grip on Adrian's hand – I heard Amy laugh. "They're saying that they think Adrian is a famous actor or something," she told me, very quietly, near my ear. "Is he, Mom?"

"No," I said.

"But he _is_ the one from the videos, right?"

"Yes," I whispered back. "But don't talk about that, ok?"

"Ok," she said, casting me a confused look. "But he doesn't know about them?"

"Not yet," I said.

We sat down at a booth, Violet sitting next to Adrian, and Amy sitting next to me. I saw Adrian's eyes turn again and again to Amy, as if he couldn't quite stop looking at her, but he kept the conversation light, asking both girls about school, friends, hobbies, and favorite movies and books. When the subject of Harry Potter came up, he surprised all of us by claiming to be a big fan of the series, and to be, in fact, a Gryffindor.

"I'm a Ravenclaw," Violet said. "So is Mommy. Amy's a Hufflepuff."

"Am not!" Amy said, indignant.

"Are too!"

"Am not!"

"Shh, shh," I said. "No one's a Hufflepuff."

"Dad's a Slytherin," muttered Amy, under her breath. Adrian, who'd been listening to this whole conversation with amusement, let out a little guffaw of laughter at that.

"Let's not talk about him, ok?" I said, for what felt like the hundredth time.

At that moment, a cheerful young woman in a red checkered apron approached our table. "Hi!" she enthused. "What can I get you nice folks today? Let me start with you, young lady." She leaned towards Violet, who ordered a hot fudge sundae. "And you, big sister?" the waitress said to Amy, who ordered a sundae called 'Death by Chocolate.' "And Mom? What would you like?" I shook my head, declining. I knew that there would be plenty of leftovers if I wanted them. "And what about Dad?" she asked, inclining her head to Adrian.

"He's not our dad," Violet said, immediately. "He's just our friend who lifted us up so we could see Santa."

"Oh," said the waitress, confused. She looked back and forth between Amy and Adrian a few times, and then turned her gaze back to her notepad, embarrassed. "Anyway, what would you like to order, sir?" she asked, without looking at Adrian.

"I have to keep my figure," Adrian said. "So just a coffee for me, and Sydney probably wants one too, right? Maybe a latte?"

I started to decline, but then I ordered a cappuccino. Today was about treats, after all.

The sundaes came out quickly, and each of them was about the size of a Yorkshire terrier. As the girls ate, they continued their conversation with Adrian, who encouraged them with questions and compliments. I sipped my coffee, so full of conflicting emotions I hardly knew how to feel. When the girls had eaten as much as they could, and I'd had a few bites – well, more than a few –of the ice cream they'd left behind, Adrian paid the check and pointed out a small playground built into the restaurant, suggesting that Violet and Amy play a little. They were delighted by the prospect, and ran over to go down the slides and play in the ball pit. Adrian and I followed them over and sat down on a bench to watch them play.

"Adrian," I said. "I –"

"Shh," he said, but then, to my surprise, he took my hand and held it tight. We sat in silence for a while. When he finally spoke, it was in a hushed voice, totally different from his usual jocular tone. "I... I don't want to play favorites, you know?" he said. "Only douche-bags do that, and besides, Violet is obviously completely awesome. I liked her the second I met her. But Amy..." He shook his head. "She's _mine_." He turned to look me in the eye. "Admit it," he said. "I want to hear you say it."

"She's yours," I said, very quietly. "Amy is your daughter." Adrian nodded to himself and turned away, but he didn't let go of my hand. A long silence followed, during which I felt my heart almost stop. He was going to say he hated me, and that he'd never forgive me. Wasn't he?

Then I heard Adrian's sharp intake of breath. I looked up to see him rubbing a few tears out of his eyes. "She's the most beautiful thing I've ever seen," he whispered.

"She is, isn't she?" I answered.

"She really is," he said. "There aren't words." He squeezed my hand, and I squeezed back. A few minutes went by as we watched the girls playing.

"Were you ever going to tell me about her?" Adrian asked after a while, in a ragged voice.

"I don't know," I said. "I hadn't thought that far ahead. But I swear, I... I didn't do it to hurt you. I know you must be furious with me but..." I trailed off.

"I _should_ be angry," Adrian said. "I should be like, _enraged_, that you kept this secret from me for so long." He drew in a long breath, then let it out. "And I am a little angry, I can't lie. But I just can't be _that_ angry. Meeting her... Both of them, really. Violet is like a miniature you." He gave me a smile, wiping away a few more tears. "I mean, I didn't know until now that love at first sight was really possible. But now I want to just take all three of you home with me and let that be that."

"It doesn't work that way," I whispered, though the thought of it was beautiful beyond description.

"I guess not," he said. "Just a dream I had." We were still holding hands, and he began to stroke the back of my hand with his thumb. "I really can't moralize at you too much, anyway," he added. "You were the one who carried her and gave birth. And you've certainly had it rough enough for ten years. All I've really had to face is loneliness."

"Well, you did miss out on a lot," I said. "I feel awful about it."

"Yeah," he said. "I know." We sat in silence for a little longer, until he said, "Well, I have a confession of my own."

"What's that?" I said, fearing the worst. Did he already have kids somewhere? Was he married?

"I'm not here by coincidence," he said, a little sheepishly.

"Well, duh," I said, relaxing again. "I kind of figured _that_. How'd you manage it?"

"Long story," he said. "You're not mad at me for sort of... stalking you like this?"

I shrugged. "I guess I should be, but... honestly, it's so nice to see you. And I don't have a leg to stand on, anger wise."

Adrian smiled at me tentatively. "Listen, can we meet up later tonight?"

"In a dream?" I asked, and he nodded. "Yes, definitely, we can," I said.

"Good," he said. "Because there's a whole lot I want to talk to you about. I can explain about how I found you today, and you can explain why you've been hiding the existence of my daughter from me for ten years." A short, cold silence fell, and then Adrian squeezed my hand again. "Sorry. Didn't mean to put it that way. But um, right now, I think I need some time to think and stuff."

"Ok," I said. "Take the time you need."

"I will," he said. "But first I want you to know that this doesn't change how I feel about you. It changes just about everything else on the planet, but not how I feel about you. I still love you like crazy. So... I'm going to have to deal." He took a deep breath, then looked over at me with a weak smile. "I can't believe I'm someone's dad," he said. "I mean, it's freaky."

"Not that freaky," I said.

"You've had ten years to get used to it," Adrian said. "I've had less than an hour." He gave me a brief, measuring look, then stood up and went over to the girls. I followed him, slightly worried about what he'd say to them.

"Hey, Amy, Violet," he said, and they stopped playing and came over to him. "I have to do something really quickly, but I want to hang out with you guys some more. Would you like that?"

"Yes, of course," Amy said.

"What do you have to do?" Violet asked, in her quiet voice.

"Just stuff," Adrian said, smiling. "But listen. I'm going to go have a word with Santa and his helpers to make sure you get a chance to visit with him, ok?" At this, the girls let out a cheer, and Adrian smiled. "And then I'm going to come back and meet you at Santa's workshop, in about half an hour."

I was surprised. He had thinking to do - for half an hour? I wondered if that would be nearly enough time for him to acclimatize himself to the existence of a nine-year-old daughter.

"Don't you let your Mom leave without me, you promise?" Adrian was telling the girls, as I tuned back into what he was saying.

"We promise," said Violet, in an intense whisper.

Amy held out her wrist. "I have a watch," she said, proudly. "What time is a half an hour away?"

"12:15," Adrian said, tapping on the "12" and "3" on her watch. "Right, Sydney? That's when we're meeting?" He grinned at me.

I obviously couldn't contradict him _now_. "Yes, of course," I said. Violet and Amy cheered again, said quick goodbyes to Adrian, then went back to playing.

"Give me a hug goodbye," Adrian said, and wrapped me in a fairly chaste hug.

"You sneak," I said, in his ear.

"Takes one to know one," he said, as we pulled apart. "Look, I just need a few minutes to think, and I have to do a few things. But really, go over to the Santa station in a few minutes and go straight to the front of the line. They'll be expecting you."

"Thanks," I said.

"And don't sneak off, please," he said. "I really want to hang out with all of you some more."

"I have a feeling it wouldn't do me any good to sneak away," I said.

"You're probably right," he said. "I'll see you at 12:15."

"Bye," I said. He nodded and walked away.

I watched his tall form leaving the restaurant, then sat back down for a few minutes to compose myself. Then I told the girls it was time to go. We hit the bathrooms, got our coats back on, and walked over to Santa's workshop again. We followed Adrian's instructions, and the moment we identified ourselves, we were ushered directly to Santa. I wondered if Adrian had used money, compulsion, or a combination of the two to make it happen, and then found I just didn't care when I saw how happy Violet and Amy were.

After the visit to Santa, we still had a few minutes to wait before Adrian came back, so we sat down by the mall's Christmas tree, just gazing at the bright lights. At precisely 12:15, Adrian reappeared by our bench. Both girls jumped up to give him a hug simultaneously, as if he was their very best friend and he'd been gone for weeks. He looked surprised but pleased at the affectionate gesture. "How was Santa?" he asked. Both girls began talking excitedly about how much fun they'd had and Adrian nodded, listening appreciatively. "And is it time for Christmas shopping now?" he asked.

"Yes," Violet said, gravely. "I want to buy Mommy a present."

"I do, too," Adrian said, and smiled at me. The thin edge of anger I'd sensed in him before seemed gone. Adrian's moods had always been changeable and unpredictable. This time, that seemed to be working to my advantage. He had forgiven me in less time than most people would have even had needed to simply process the basics of the situation.

"You don't have to buy me anything," I said.

"But I want to," Adrian said. "And you can't stop me, ha ha!"

"Ha ha," Violet repeated, in a whisper. I shot her a quelling look, and her eyes widened and her mouth closed. I reached over to smooth her hair and she smiled again.

"And after that? Where were you lovely ladies going to go next?" Adrian asked.

"A museum," Amy said. "I want to see the dinosaurs. I'm going to be an archeologist when I grow up."

"Paleontologist," Violet corrected.

"That's what I said," Amy said.

"You're going to the dinosaur museum?" Adrian asked. "That's my favorite museum." He looked down at the ground, pouting.

"Do you want to come with us, Mr. Adrian?" Violet asked, shyly.

"Oh, yes, please," Adrian said. "I would really like to. And just call me Adrian," he added. "Mr. Adrian sounds like I'm your substitute teacher or something."

"My Dad says it's rude to call grownups by their first name," Violet said. "Is it?"

"It depends on the grownup," Adrian said. "I don't mind it." He turned to me. "So, Sydney, is it ok if I go with you to the dinosaur museum?"

I couldn't exactly say 'no,' and anyway, I didn't really want to. "Sure," I said. "But we have to do our shopping first."

"I love shopping," Adrian said. "Let's shop. Where are you going first?"

So, we ended up going to a few stores together. Amy bought Violet a few pretty barrettes without Violet noticing, and Violet bought Amy a little statue of a unicorn while Adrian kept Amy distracted. Once that was done, Amy suggested that Adrian take them shopping without me for a little while so that they could buy me a present in secret. I found myself agreeing to the plan, and each girl grabbed one of Adrian's hands and dragged him off. He turned around to look at me, clearly bemused by the whole thing, but not unpleasantly so.

I shopped on my own for about twenty minutes, keeping my eye on the bench where we were supposed to meet up again. It was a good opportunity to pick up a few presents for the girls, and something small for Adrian, but as I shopped, it occurred to me that I had just trusted Adrian to take care of the two people on earth who were most precious to me, more precious by far than my own life. And, even more strangely, I wasn't worried in the slightest.

With a few minutes left to go, I sat down on the bench and opened the package of the gift I'd bought for Adrian, taking a moment to connect it to the USB drive on my keyring so it would be ready to give to him when we parted for the day. I had just put everything away again when Adrian and the girls returned, the girls chittering away like little happy birds, and Adrian carrying a small shopping bag.

"We got you the best present, Mommy," Violet was saying, jumping up and down. "You're going to be so happy. It's so nice."

"It was my idea," Amy said.

"No, it was mine," Violet said.

"No, it was _mine_," Adrian said, with a grin, and that ended that little spat before it began. "Now, Am-azing, Miss Purple, who's ready for some dinosaurs?"

Of course. Give Adrian fifteen minutes, and he'll give someone a nickname. The girls began jumping up and down again in enthusiasm, and we began walking towards the exit. Adrian got out his phone as we walked and made a quick call, and when we got outside, a stretch limo was waiting for us at the curb. A white gloved driver got out to open the door for us. I looked at Adrian witheringly, and he grinned. "It's for _them_," he said, gesturing with his head as the girls got inside eagerly. "If I'd been showing off for you, I would have rented a muscle car and let you drive it." I couldn't help but smile at that. "Listen," he added. "I'll bring you guys back here to your own car when you're ready to go. I promise. So just get in, ok?"

I couldn't deny the girls the pleasure of riding in a fancy limo, and to tell the truth, I'd kind of always wanted to try it myself. "Fine," I muttered, and got in the car. We rode over to the museum, passing through the historic center of the city. When we passed by some of the most famous buildings, Adrian rolled back the sun roof, then held each girl up in turn so that she could look out of the open window. I think that Amy and Violet thought they'd died and gone to heaven. For my part, I didn't know how to feel exactly, but when Adrian took my hand and offered me a smile, I found myself smiling too.

The limo dropped us off a short distance from the museum. We had to walk through the open, grassy area known as the Mall, a name that struck the girls as funny since we'd just been at a shopping mall. We could see the famous Washington Monument, as well as the long reflecting pool. It was a cloudy, dull day, so Adrian was safe from the sun, but it was too cold to walk around outside much. So, we went pretty directly over to the Smithsonian museum devoted to Natural History. Adrian got out his wallet, but it was Violet who pointed out that the museum was free. "I read about it in _Highlights_," she said. Adrian shot me an amused look, and let Violet drag him inside.

We walked from room to room, looking at all the dinosaur skeletons first. Adrian named all the dinos we saw, giving them names like "Bob" and "Alison," which made the girls laugh.

"That one looks like a girl from my class," Amy said, pointing.

"Ooh," said Adrian. "That one looks like my old math teacher. Rarrh!"

We looked at the dioramas of ancient people, and the displays of amazing geodes, and the meteors that had come so far before they'd fallen to Earth. Everywhere we went, I found other people were staring at us – well, staring at Adrian. With his good looks and expensive clothes, he really did look like some sort of VIP. I caught a few tourists taking pictures of him, and once, a female tourist stopped us and asked us all to pose for a picture with her, which we did. She ran back to her friends and showed them the picture triumphantly, and we walked away, astonished.

"Are you sure he's not famous, Mom?" Amy asked.

"He's an artist, not an actor," I said. "Some people might know him because of his art, but I think these people just want to take pictures of him because he's so... you know. Handsome."

"My ears are burning," Adrian said, a few steps away.

"He has good hearing like Amy," Violet said.

"Yes, he does," I said. "Oh, look, a sabre-tooth tiger!"

When the girls started to get tired, we found the theater inside the museum that was showing an IMAX movie about coral reefs. Violet and Amy were watching it with rapt attention, but I couldn't concentrate with Adrian sitting next to me. He seemed to be playing with something in his pocket, but I couldn't figure out what it was, since he never took it out to look at it. Finally, I nudged him and indicated the door, and he nodded. I whispered to Amy that Adrian and I were going to be right outside, and she nodded impatiently, wanting to watch the movie.

"So," I said, when we'd gotten outside. "What's in your pocket?"

"Oh," Adrian said. "Nothing much. Good movie, right?"

"Fascinating," I said. "Seriously, what's..."

And he leaned forward and kissed me. There we were, two grown adults, kissing like teenagers out past curfew, and I found I didn't care. It was subtly different to kiss him in real life than it had been to kiss him in a dream. It was... well, real. When we pulled apart, I looked around us, blushing, and saw that a few people walking by were shooting us dirty looks – except for a few people who were just outright staring.

"People are looking at us," I whispered.

"It's because you're so pretty," Adrian said, and leaned forward again.

"Hey," I said, ducking away. "We can't. We'll get kicked out of the museum."

He laughed, that lovely laugh. A few women walking by turned and stared, then shot looks of pure murderous jealousy at me. Well, they wouldn't be so jealous if they knew the first thing about my life, I thought. Adrian made a half-hearted attempt to talk me into making out in the back row of the theater, but finally accepted my suggestion to sit down on a nearby bench, which overlooked a display made to look like an African sunrise.

"What did you want to talk about?" he asked.

"I wanted to ask what's in your pocket," I said.

"Just my phone," Adrian said. "See?" He pulled a phone from his pocket, and put it away again. "That's all. Anything else on your mind?"

"Other than... everything?" I said, and we both laughed. "I guess I wanted to give you something."

"You have a present for me?" he asked, eyebrows raised.

"Yeah, it's in my purse," I said, and turned to open the zipper.

"Give it to me later," Adrian said, resting his hand on mine. "You look so pretty in this fake sunrise light. I'm happy to just sit here with you."

"You really think that?" I said. "I don't look..."

"What?"

"_Old_," I said.

"Old?" Adrian said. "I'm older than you by a few years, so if you're old, what am I?"

"It's different for women," I said. "I mean, I know I'm not like, ancient. But I'm not 20 anymore. And I've had two kids..." After both pregnancies, Rick had nagged me mercilessly to get the weight back off, so I was still in good shape, but I still felt strange about it.

Adrian shook his head. "First off, you don't look a day over 22. Second, I don't get this obsession with youth. Being gorgeous at 20 is no great feat. But being gorgeous at 30 or 40 or 50... that means a bit more. It means that you're truly gorgeous. Which you are, by the way."

I smiled and looked down at our clasped hands. "Thanks," I said. "I wasn't sure how I'd look in person. Maybe in dreams I sort of... fudged the details."

"Is that why you were nervous to meet in person?" Adrian asked. "Or was it just because of... Amy?"

"A little of both," I said. "Mostly the latter."

There was a long pause, and then Adrian said, very slowly, "Did you hide her from me because... you didn't think I'd be a good dad?"

"Oh, God no," I said. "No, no, Adrian, that wasn't it at all." I put my arm around him and squeezed him tight.

"It would probably have been fair if you did think that," he said. "I mean, I don't know if I would be. Will be. Whatever."

That had broached the topic that I was terrified to discuss – what role Adrian would play in Amy's life now that he knew about her. So, to head it off, I took a small object out of my purse. "Look," I said. "This is my present for you, the one I was talking about." It was a small media player that could play both videos and mp3 files. It wasn't very expensive or anything, and I could see Adrian's look of surprise. We both knew he had nicer media players than this already, so he was probably wondering why I'd chosen this as a gift. "It's not the player that's important," I explained, as he took it from me. "It's what's on it. I had some files on a USB drive on my keychain, and I imported them to the player while I was waiting for you guys to get back."

Adrian turned the media player on, scrolled down to the list of videos, and chose the first one on the list. The video began playing, and we both looked at the image on the small screen. A tiny baby slept in a crib, her thumb in her mouth. "Hi, Adrian," came my voice from the speaker. "This is Amaryllis. She's three days old. She's sleeping, or I'd ask her to say 'hi' to you." The video continued playing for another minute, then cut off. Adrian turned and looked at me with wonder in his eyes.

I shrugged. "Watch the next one."

He clicked on the next video. A six month old baby with bright green eyes giggled at the camera. "Hi, Adrian," came my voice from the camera. "It's March 18th, your birthday. Amy and I are thinking about you. Right, Amy?" The baby just giggled.

Adrian pulled me close to him, wordlessly, and we watched several more videos together. Amy digging into a huge cake on her first birthday. Amy taking tentative steps on chubby little legs. Amy saying "Da-da" and smiling. Amy holding her new baby sister in her lap. Amy at a dance recital, as a bunch of three-year-olds moved about the stage randomly. Then came the video with a a four-year old Amy smiling uncertainly on our back porch.

"It's March 18th," I said, in the video. "It's Adrian's birthday today. Say happy birthday to Adrian, Amy."

"Happy birthday, Adrian," little Amy said. "Who's Adrian, Mommy?"

"He's our friend," I said, from behind the camera. "He loves us. Just talk to him."

"Ok," Amy said, then paused before she continued. "Hi, Adrian," she said. "How are you? I hope you're fine. Mommy and I are fine, even though it's cold out here. Um. Do you like dogs? Because I like dogs and I can't have a dog, Daddy says. I have a little sister named Violet. She just turned two. We had a party and cake." She shrugged. "Is that enough, Mommy?"

"That's great," came my voice, and then the video stopped.

Adrian put the player down and pulled me into a tight hug. "Thank you," he whispered.

"Least I could do," I muttered, embarrassed.

He pulled away from me, dabbing at the sides of his eyes. "Holy shit," he said. "Did Amy know about me all along?"

"Not really," I said. "She just knew that we had a friend named Adrian who loved us. We always celebrated your birthday together. I had to do that much for you."

"So my last nine or ten birthdays, you've been thinking of me," he said. "Wow. That's crazy."

"Like I said, the least I could do," I said. "Anyway. It's all on the player now. You can watch them when you get home, or whenever. I know it doesn't make up for not being able to watch her grow up. But I just... I made those videos, and I kept them on my keychain for safe keeping, and when I saw you at the mall today I thought you'd want them."

He kissed me a few times, blinking away tears. "Wow," he said. "I can't believe you were thinking of me the whole time. I thought you must have forgotten me."

"As if I could forget you, with your eyes staring at me out of my daughter's face," I said. "As if I could forget you, anyway. You were my first love."

"How many loves have you had?" Adrian asked, in a subdued tone.

"Just one," I said, and our eyes met.

He smiled and stroked my cheek with his fingertips. Then he held up the media player. "This is the second best present I ever got," he said. "Come here, Sydney." He pulled me to him, and I leaned my head on his shoulder. He smelled amazing, as always. His presence in real life was even more affecting than it had been in dreams, and I felt the blood starting to rush in my veins, like a river rushes when it gets closer to the sea. I was just going to kiss him again when people began emerging from the theater.

"Violet's calling us," Adrian said, and walked through a group of people straight towards my daughters. I couldn't hear her calling until we got much closer, of course, but with Adrian's help, we were all reunited quickly anyway.

Amy and Violet were both full of stories about the movie, and Adrian and I listened with good humor as we walked over to the Insect Pavilion, where we were just in time to see the tarantulas being fed. Adrian was surprisingly squeamish for someone who sucked blood out of people's necks a few times a week, I thought, but the three of us girls watched the process with interest.

After that, we went to see the butterfly exhibit – another chance for Adrian to use his amazing talents to scoot us to the front of a line. When we left the area, I think both girls were on some sort of happiness overload, and we decided to go visit the museum cafe for a snack with at least a modicum of nutritional value. There we ordered snacks with names like "Sharkburgers" and "Butterfly salads," which, thankfully, contained neither sharks nor butterflies.

As we left the restaurant, we noticed a sign saying that another IMAX movie, this one about giant pandas, was starting soon. We hurried up the stairs towards the theater, hoping to get there in time for the start of the movie, when Amy suddenly let out a painful sounding cry. We all turned to see her standing on one foot, her body heaving with stifled sobs. Adrian immediately went to her side, scooped her up, and carried her up the last half-flight of stairs to a landing. Violet and I followed as quickly as we could.

"Someone pushed me," Amy said, as Adrian placed her very gently on a bench. "I started to fall and I stepped funny."

I didn't doubt that. My daughter was agile and fast, and she had probably caught herself before she had fallen and caused a much more serious injury. Half of me wanted to hunt down the careless tourist who had treated her so callously, but the rest of me was focused on her immediate needs. Amy was trying not to cry – she didn't like crying in public, if she could help it – but she was obviously in a lot of pain. Through shaky repressed sobs, she described the pain in her ankle, and I could tell that she had twisted it. This would mean months out of gymnastics class, and a long uncomfortable conversation with Rick.

"Aim-Aim," Violet said, sitting down next to Amy and using her most affectionate pet name for her big sister. "You can have this." She pulled a small 'fun-size' chocolate from her pocket and handed it to Amy.

"Th-thanks, Vy-Vy," Amy said, and began tearing open the wrapper.

"Where'd that candy come from?" I asked Adrian in an undertone, as Amy began eating.

"Me, of course," Adrian said, as he knelt down in front of Amy and took off her shoe. "Hey, Am-azing," he said. "Want to see a trick? I know how to fix ankles so that they don't hurt anymore."

I realized two things very quickly: one, that Adrian was about to use his spirit magic to heal Amy's twisted ankle, and two, that I didn't mind in the slightest. The same magic that had terrified me when I first knew Adrian years and years ago now seemed like a godsend. I wasn't about to deny a healing to Amy, with her tear-streaked face, white with pain. Nothing like motherhood to change priorities, I realized. I watched as Adrian gently moved Amy's ankle in a circle, squeezed her toes, and tickled her instep, as if those actions were the "trick" to taking away pain.

"It feels funny," Amy said. "All hot and cold and tingly..."

"It's magic," Adrian said. "There you are! All better!"

Amy rotated her ankle experimentally, then grinned. "It really is. Thank you." She threw her arms around him in a tight hug, and Adrian hugged her right back. He even, very cautiously, stroked her hair a few times. Then he released her, and she happily put her shoe back on, still hoping to get to the movie theater in time to see the panda movie.

The movie was brief, and when it was over, we agreed that we'd had enough of the museum. We decided to take a little walk around the Mall area to look at some of the monuments. The girls took turns getting piggy-back rides from Adrian, who bore their enthusiasm with amazing good humor. Once we got tired of walking around, Adrian called for the limo to pick us up, and we rode back over to the parking lot where our own car was waiting for us.

Adrian unpacked a few shopping bags from the trunk of the limo and put them into our trunk. It seemed like a lot more bags than I had thought we'd had, but I knew that shopping bags have a way of multiplying over a course of a shopping trip. Once everything was packed up, we knew it was time to say goodbye. We had a very long drive ahead of us, and I wanted to get home before it was time for bed.

"Goodbye, Adrian," Amy said. "Thanks for the presents and stuff. And my ankle."

"Goodbye, Am-azing," Adrian said, and bent to give her a cautious hug. But she threw her arms around him tightly, sighing loudly, and he grinned and picked her up to swing her around. She giggled madly, tightening her hold on him, as they spun. Finally, he put her down, then blew her a kiss as she got into the car.

Violet stood by, obviously wanting the same treatment. "Goodbye, Mr. Adrian," she said. "It was very nice to have met you."

"Goodbye, Miss Purple," Adrian said affectionately, and picked her up and swung her around, too. She held him tightly, eyes closed, as she spun, then when he put her down, she waved at him wordlessly and got into the car.

That just left me, still outside and waiting. Adrian stepped over to me and said, "Will I see you tonight?"

"Yes," I said. "Maybe around 1, is that good?"

"It's great," he said. He paused, then whispered, "God, I want to kiss you."

"Don't," I said. "The girls will see."

"It's ok," he said. "I think they kind of 'ship' us, you know?"

I didn't bother asking him what that meant. "Listen," I said. "I just don't think the girls should see that kind of thing."

"What kind of thing?" he asked. "Love?"

"They have enough secrets to keep from their father... from Rick," I said. "Don't give them any more."

"Hmm," he said. "I guess I see your point. Well, fair enough. Can I hug you, though?"

"Please do," I said.

He pulled me to him, picking me off the ground a foot or two and spinning me around. I found myself giggling a little. When he released me and let me slide back down to earth, I felt like I was still floating. It took all my willpower not to kiss him before we said goodbye and I got into the car. I waited until he'd gotten into the limo and driven away before I put the car in drive.

"When can we see Mr. Adrian again?" Violet asked, as soon as the limo was out of sight. "Can he come over to our house? Or can we go over to his house?"

"We'll see," I said.

"He's so nice," Amy said. "I liked him."

"I liked him too," Violet said.

"Is he a doctor?" Amy asked. "'Cause he fixed my ankle so good."

"No," I said. "But he is good at fixing things, like ankles."

"I want to be a doctor when I grow up," Amy said.

"That's what _I_ want to be," Violet said.

"You want to be president," Amy said.

"President _and_ doctor," Violet said. "That way I can fix people and they'll vote for me."

Amy rolled her eyes. "Whatever."

Violet stuck out her tongue at Amy, then caught my eye in the rear view mirror. "Is Adrian your best friend, Mommy?" she asked.

"Boys and girls can't be best friends," Amy said.

"Yes they can," I said. "And I guess Adrian is... one of my best friends."

"Did you meet him a long time ago?" Amy asked. "Like a long, long time ago?"

"A pretty long time ago," I said. "Hey, how about I put on a movie? We have the Grinch movie here."

"Ooh," said Amy.

"Yes, please," said Violet, and I slid the DVD into the player.

Soon the girls were engrossed in another movie that their father would probably have forbidden them from seeing if he had known about it. I had borrowed the DVDs from the library, as I'd done on a few other occasions, and the girls knew that they were never to admit that they had seen them. We kept a few nature documentaries in the car as a cover, and sometimes, we even watched them, too. But there was nothing like forbidden fruit.

The drive was long, and during the movie, both girls fell asleep. After that, I drove in silence, thinking of the crazy day we'd had, and of the other, much longer drive I'd made, the night when Amy was conceived. I felt pretty sure that wherever Adrian was, he was probably thinking of that night, too.

_Reviews are awesome! Half-way-through-the-story-reviews are particularly great... No reason to wait until the end... :)  
_


	8. Something to Think About

**Chapter 8: Something to Think About**

The dream began simply this time – no cute reveals, no doorbells ringing. I was sitting on a familiar yellow plaid couch in a familiar messy apartment. Adrian was sitting with me, and he was wearing a red Santa hat in addition to his usual sleeping outfit of a tank top and boxers. I reached for him and we held each other tightly, wordlessly, for a long moment.

"Hi," I murmured, when we pulled apart. I took his Santa hat off of him so that I could caress the back of his head and neck.

"Hello, gorgeous," he said, and brushed a kiss on my cheek, then another one on my neck.

"I know we have a lot to talk about and stuff," I said. "But first, I just want to say thank you." I took his face in my hands and pressed kisses all over his cheeks and temples before settling in for a longer kiss on the lips.

"You're welcome, of course," he said, when I was done. "I guess you opened the presents?" he added, looking down at what I was wearing.

"That's not what I was thanking you for," I said. "But thank you for them, too. Obviously, I did open _one_ of them. We're going to open the rest in the morning, though, so no spoilers."

When I'd unloaded the car after we had gotten back home, I had found a few bags full of presents that were all labeled "From Santa." One was labeled with a phrase in Latin that translated to "Open me when you're alone." The girls had wrapped their presents for each and me – Amy and I took turns helping Violet – and we'd arranged most of them in a pile under the poinsettia plant. Once the girls had gone to sleep, I had opened the box for me and found a beautiful – and extremely sexy – red satin negligee. I had put it on before going to sleep, feeling like I was getting ready for a date.

"Do you like it?" Adrian asked. His eyes roamed my body, then returned to my face.

"I've never owned anything like this," I said. "But yes. I like it."

"Promise me you'll only wear it when Rick's out of town," Adrian said. I shot him a look, and he laughed. "Sorry," he said. "I didn't need to say that."

"No," I said. "This is only for you." I kissed his cheek.

"And did you find the phone, too?" he asked.

"Yes, I found it," I said. "I put it in an inside pocket of my purse." The phone had been hidden between the folded layers of satin, and when I'd turned it on, I had found that one number was already programmed in, under the name "Jet Steel."

"It's pre-paid and bought under a fake name," Adrian said. "You can use it for whatever you want, to call whoever you want, and I can put more money on it if you run out, so do what you need to do, ok? But I wanted you to be able to contact me quickly if you needed to for any reason. Like, if something happens to you or the girls. I can hop a private jet and get there within an hour or two max."

"I know," I said. "It's nice to have." I squeezed him tightly again, loving the feeling of his warm body against mine.

"But you were saying 'thank you' for something else?" Adrian prompted, when we separated a little.

I smiled. "Yes," I said. "I was saying thank you for... you know. How you reacted. To Amy, I mean." Adrian nodded, and I tried again to say what I was feeling. "Thanks for not hating me for what I did."

"I could _never_ hate you," Adrian said. "Come on, put your feet up." He gestured, and I moved around on the couch so that I could rest my calves on his lap. He immediately began massaging my feet. Part of me wanted to roll my eyes at his lady-killer moves, but the other part of me just really enjoyed it. The guy knew how to give a foot rub. Of course he did.

"You have no idea how scared I was, the whole time," I said. "For years and years, I had this secret. I couldn't tell anyone. Literally. Not anyone. I couldn't even seek guidance from the church because... well, obviously. I couldn't. And I couldn't even tell you, though I wanted to, I swear. It's just, the longer I kept the secret, the bigger it got, the more I thought you'd hate me if you knew. It was... It was really hard."

"That's the thing," he said, looking up at me. His fingertips were applying gentle pressure to my right instep. "When I was thinking about it, back at the mall – you know, when you guys were visiting with Santa? – for a minute or two, sure, I was angry that I missed out on all of Amy's life so far. But then I realized that the whole time, you were suffering so much more than I was. You were married to a dirtbag, and you were guarding a secret that would have blown your whole world up if anyone found out about it."

"Yeah, that's more or less it," I said. "I wish I had told you sooner. I feel so much better with you knowing now. It's such a weight off my shoulders, like, almost literally, I actually feel... lighter now. You have no idea how good it feels." I paused as he continued to massage my left foot. "And _that_ feels great too," I said, gesturing to my feet. "I guess I owe you another thank you."

"It's my pleasure," Adrian said, and for a moment I just watched as his hands moved. Then he broke the silence again. "What was it like for you, back then?" he asked, in a gentle tone. "Did anyone suspect that Amy was... different?"

I shook my head. "No. Rick thought she looked like _him_, in fact. I guess people see what they want to see."

"What did _you_ see when you looked at her?"

"You," I said, and the intensity of that one syllable stopped Adrian mid-motion. He looked over at my face. "When I missed you," I said, "I would just pick her up and look into her eyes, or hold her and feel your presence..." I felt my lower lip start to tremble a little, and I steadied it consciously. "I had to do that a lot."

"I missed you too," Adrian said. "The whole time."

"Yes," I said. "For ten years."

"For ten years," he agreed. We both sort of nodded, and Adrian kissed my hand. Then he resumed massaging my feet. "Speaking of ten years ago," he added. "How do you like the location? Nice blast from the past, right?"

I looked around a little. "You got every detail," I said. "Of course, you did live here, so I guess that makes sense."

"Oh, I remember everything about this place," he said, his fingertips pressing into the balls of my feet. "For instance, that spot by the window, that's where I was when the light fell on your face that time and I realized I was in love with you. And this couch is where I lay for about a week after you left Palm Springs. And right there, by the door – that's where you looked me at me with those big brown eyes and said..." He mimicked a sexy female voice: " 'Let's go to your bedroom.'" I drew in breath to speak, but he cut me off. "I'm not angry at you, Sage, not anymore, but I don't understand." His hands stopped moving, and our eyes met. "Why did you do it?"

"I was still with the alchemists then," I said. "I sensed that I had conceived and I was trying to –"

"No," he said, interrupting. "I meant, why did you sleep with me that night in the first place? Did you pity me or something? Were you throwing the dog a bone – so to speak?" A ghost of a smile flitted across his face and disappeared.

"It wasn't pity," I said. "Definitely not. I just thought... it was my last chance. My only chance. I just..." I looked at a spot on the wall for a long moment. There wasn't anything to look at, but I looked anyway.

"What?" Adrian asked. I shook my head, unable to speak. "Tell me," he urged.

I took a deep breath, trying to find an elegant, articulate way to say it, and then gave up and blurted, "I just wanted you." I wiped my eyes and went on. "I just wanted to have you for a little while. I knew that after that, I was going to recommit to being an alchemist again. I allowed myself just that much."

"Oh, Sage," he said. "Are you telling me that you _knew_ the entire time that we were... together? You already knew that you were going to leave when we were done?" I nodded. "Didn't that kind of... ruin it for you?" he asked.

I shrugged. "It was so wonderful to be near you that I was able to sort of block it out."

"So you were living in the now," Adrian commented. "Not usually your thing."

"It is when..." I trailed off, then said, in an embarrassed near-whisper, "It is when I'm kissing you. For whatever reason."

I half expected Adrian to kiss me at that point, but he didn't. He just dabbed at the outside corner of my eye with a fingertip, then said, "So you knew the whole time, but you just went with it." I nodded. "Did it occur to you that maybe you could have told _me _about your plan? Like maybe it was a little relevant to me, too?"

He had begun to apply gentle pressure to the back of my ankle, and it felt wonderful – but his words were more like a slap in the face. I opened my mouth to speak, then closed it again. The truth was that it hadn't occurred to me to tell Adrian about my plan to leave that night, and now that I was confronted with my own thoughtlessness, I felt terrible about it. "I guess not," I said, lamely. I moved to sit up a little, but Adrian gestured for me to lie back as his hands began rubbing one of my calves. "I wanted you to... enjoy it," I said. "I wanted you to be happy for as long as you could be."

"So you made the decision for both of us," he said. "Then you snuck out in the middle of the night and didn't say goodbye. And when I found you in a dream, you woke up. The only communication I got from you was that awful text message."

"Don't remind me," I groaned.

"'Please understand that I have to do this,'" Adrian recited smoothly. "'We can't see each other ever again. Don't dreamwalk either. I wish you the best.'"

"I'm sorry."

"Your text messages always had perfect grammar," he mused. "Like, perfect spelling and everything."

"I know it was an awful thing to do," I said. "Just texting that. But at the time, I really thought you'd forget about me in a few months."

"I was so happy that night," Adrian said bitterly, apparently ignoring my comment. His hands stopped moving. "I was like, blissed out. I went to sleep with you naked in my arms, and I was thinking of all the things we'd do together the next day. I wanted to take a shower with you and have breakfast with you and have sex again and just cuddle all day. Hell, I wanted that to last for the entire foreseeable future. I didn't think there was any way you'd sleep with me if you didn't care a lot about me."

"I _did_ care," I said. I swung my legs over to the floor so that I could sit up and slide my arms around him. "You're right. I never would have... done that... if I didn't care."

"But you _left_," he said. "I went to sleep with you in my arms, and woke up with you gone. You just left and you didn't even say goodbye."

"I had to leave," I said. "I had to. Because I felt... Amy. I mean, I didn't know she was Amy yet, but I knew someone was alive in there. And I knew I had to protect her."

"From what, exactly?" Adrian asked, turning to look me in the eye.

"From... from... from everything!" I said, more loudly than I had intended. "That night when I ran away, I was just acting on instinct, but as I drove back to Utah, I thought more about it, and the more I thought about it, the more it made sense that I had to hide the truth about the baby. If my family knew, they would have sent me to reeducation, and taken the baby away. I didn't want her to end up enrolled at St. Vlad's, basically an orphan, like Eddie. I didn't want her to end up out fighting Strigoi somewhere when she was still really young, like Rose did, or god forbid, _dying_ really young, like that friend of yours... the one who looked like Micah."

"Mason," Adrian said.

"Right. I didn't want her to be dead at 16 or 17 like Mason. And I didn't want her to feel like an outcast, like Angeline used to, a human-Moroi offspring in a society that views those relationships as disgusting."

Adrian nodded grimly but didn't interrupt.

I went on, gathering momentum. "And it's not like you're just any Moroi, either, Adrian. You're from a prominent royal family, grand-nephew to a murdered queen. I didn't want my baby to have some horrible royal duty, or to be useful only for her bloodline, like Jill, or to be some kind of dirty little royal secret. As long as people knew she was your daughter, she'd be in danger." Adrian nodded again. "Besides," I said, very gently. "The _last_ thing you needed right then was a baby. You still were struggling, pretty seriously, with your spirit darkness, and you still had all that static with your parents. I just..." Adrian was looking at me with a serious, intent expression that I had rarely seen on him. I took his hands in mine and kissed his knuckles. "I was trying to do right thing," I said. "The right thing for all of us. There didn't seem to be any way that you and I could raise the baby together. I didn't want her to get adopted out to a human family who wouldn't understand her and her... unique abilities. And I didn't want to... you know. Let her go."

Adrian sighed and gathered me to him. He held me very close for a few minutes. I could feel his deep breathing. "I know you did your best," he said, finally, close to my ear, and then kissed my cheek. We pulled apart, and I met his eye. "And some of what you was pretty much on target," he said. "Most of it, really. If and when the royals hear about Amy, it'll pretty much ruin any chance for an Ivashkov to retake the throne any time this century. And I hate to admit it, but I probably would have made a shitty dad when I was 22." He shook his head. "But _still_."

"I know," I said.

"I would have done my best," he said.

"I know."

"And it might have turned out ok."

"It might have."

There was a long pause. Then Adrian kissed my hand. "So," he said, and gave me a faint smile. "Tell me how you managed to convince Rick that Amy was his."

"It was easy," I said. "I married him within a week of when I um, slept with you. That's all it took."

"So Amy was born nine months after your wedding, and he assumed she was his," he said. "I can't imagine not recognizing a dhampir when you see one, but..." He shrugged.

"You should have seen some of those bigwig alchemists," I said, and couldn't quite suppress a smile. "They all picked Amy up, held her, blessed her, cooed over her..."

"Not knowing that they were holding an evil creature of the night," Adrian said. He let out a little bark of laughter. "That's actually pretty funny."

"Yeah," I said. "I would be holding her at all these alchemist briefings... And every time someone talked about dhampirs as if they were the worst thing on earth, I wouldn't know whether to laugh or cry."

"Because who could think Amy was evil?" Adrian said. "She's too cute! Like, a nexus of cuteness! Like, she uses up the extra cute in the air around her! God, that one video where she sneezes? It kills me! She sneezes and then kind of looks right at the camera, like, 'Aren't you going to say bless you?' And then there's you, Sydney, going, 'Bless you!' from off camera and I swear she nods, like, 'yeah, you better bless me, Mom.'" He laughed. "She was the cutest fucking thing. And still is, of course."

I smiled. "You watched all the videos?"

"On the train ride back, I watched every video on that thing about a hundred times," Adrian said. "I think I have some of them memorized. Like, ok, here's where she yawns, and here's the part where she scratches her ear, and here's where she laughs..." He grinned. "I love her little baby laugh. I can't help it. It's so fucking cute."

But she wasn't a baby anymore, and I knew that. He had missed out on all of it. The videos were a paltry substitute. I suddenly felt the magnitude of what I'd taken from him, more clearly than I ever had. "I'm so sorry," I said, feeling like I was saying only a tiny fraction of what I really meant. "You should have been there. I just didn't know what to do." I put my arms around him, hoping that maybe my touch could communicate a little more of my feelings than just words could.

"Really, I get it, Sydney. I do," he said. "You were trying to protect everyone, and you put yourself through hell to do it."

"Thanks," I whispered. "Thank you for trying to understand." I sat up on my knees so that I could reach his shoulders, and I began gently massaging his neck.

"Oh, thanks," he murmured. "Hmmm..." For a minute, he just relaxed against my touch. Then he went on. "Like I said, you had it really tough, Sydney. I can't be mad at you. Not really." He turned his head to look at me, and I leaned around him to kiss his cheek. He smiled, then said, "But I do have to say, there's one thing I don't understand."

"What's that?"

"Ok, well, once you left the alchemists, there was nothing to prevent you from just saying, 'oh, the hell with all of this,' and just... coming to find me. It would been easy for you. I haven't been hiding. A little typey-typey on the google and voila, you'd have my name, address, cell phone number, email, shoe size, Amazon purchase history... Why didn't you just _find_ me, Sydney?"

"I had Violet by then," I said, digging my thumbs into the tense muscles by his spine. He leaned forward a little, giving me more access to his back. "What would I have said? 'Oh hi, Adrian,'" I intoned, in a falsely cheerful voice. "'You know how we did it that one time? Well, here's the baby, and um, here's my other baby, she's not yours or anything, but... here we all are! Can we come in? We're hungry and tired and the baby needs changing...'"

"So it was Violet," Adrian said, as if to himself, then turned around to look at me. "Did you think I wouldn't like her?"

"She was just a baby then," I said. I gripped the back of his shoulders, then rested my head on my hands. "Would you really have wanted another man's baby in your life?"

"I guess for some guys, that kind of thing matters," Adrian said. I could feel his chest vibrate when he spoke. "I don't know. I guess I would have found the whole diaper thing weird. But I would have rocked the peekaboo part. You should have seen me with Rose's kids. I swear, I was like, king of peekaboo. I can keep a baby happy for like, upwards of half an hour."

I smiled. "And you can keep two little girls ecstatic for like, four or five hours."

"They really liked me?" he asked. For a moment, Adrian Ivashkov, lady killer and royal badass, sounded genuinely insecure.

"They _loved_ you," I said. "Seriously. I wouldn't lie about that kind of thing."

"They loved me?" he repeated. "And what about you, Sydney?"

"Adrian," I said, very gently. I sat down on the couch again, my body turned towards him. "Don't you know how much you mean to me?"

"It would help if you told me," he said.

"Well, I love you, of course," I said. "Why the heck else would I have done pretty much everything I've done for ten y–"

But Adrian cut me off by pinning me down against the couch and kissing me. We kissed for a long time. It was sweet, sexy, warm, exciting, comforting – it was everything I loved about kissing Adrian. Sooner or later, though, we found ourselves just wrapped in a tight cuddle, looking into each other's eyes.

"So," I said, stroking his hair. "Now you know my secrets. Tell me some of yours."

"Like what?"

"Like how you came to be at that shopping mall in DC for starters," I said.

"That was easy," Adrian said. "You gave it away in the dream last night. When you said you were going shopping in 'another city,' you pictured the Washington Monument. Like, literally, pictured it. It appeared on my canvas."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah," Adrian said. "I told you, if you think about something clearly enough in a dream, it appears. So yeah, when I figured out you were going to DC, I wanted to... I don't know. I wanted to push things forward between us. I couldn't wait anymore. So I hopped a private jet down first thing in the morning, and got some people out looking in every shopping mall for you and your girls. I even drew a pencil sketch of you so they'd know you when they saw you. Then I got a call that you had been spotted at that mall, and so I found you." He looked pretty pleased with himself.

"And all the presents?"

"I did that while you were seeing Santa, after the ice-cream parlor. I really only needed like five minutes to think, not half an hour. I used the rest of the time to shop. Well, I mean, I told my assistant exactly what I wanted him to get. He got it all and wrapped and labeled it and everything, and ordered the limo, and put the presents in the trunk. Although, for the record, I picked _this_ out, myself." His fingers played with the bottom hem of my negligee.

"All that must have cost thousands of dollars," I said, trying not to be distracted as the backs of his hands brushed my thighs.

"Meh," Adrian said. "Don't care. One of the better decisions I've made of late." He gave me a grin. "You'll be glad to hear that I economized on the way back home from DC by taking the train instead of a jet. Now that I've got two little girls to provide for, I have to watch my pennies."

"Two?" I repeated.

"Sure," Adrian said. "Consider their college educations paid for. And if they need anything else – classes, clothes, toys, trips, whatever. And anything medical, if I can't heal it, I'll pay for the treatment, of course. Just ask."

"Really?" I said. "Violet too?"

"Well, yeah," Adrian said, as if confused by the question. "She's yours, and she's awesome. Besides, she's Amy's sister. I don't know. What am I going to do, tell Amy she can have her heart's desires just because my sperm helped make her, but meanwhile, tell little Miss Purple that she's on her own because she has that idiot for a father?"

"Some guys would say more or less just that," I said. "So... thank you. Again." Rick made a lot of money, of course, and I had my own secret college fund for the girls, which I was adding to by doing translation work on the side, but... it was nice to know. Just in case.

"My pleasure," he said. "Oh, and speaking of..." He moved around a little so that I had my back to him, then began massaging my shoulders and neck. Naturally, it felt amazing.

"I have another question for you," I said, after a moment.

"What's that?"

"Before, when I said that I knew that I was going to leave right after we slept together, you said you wished I had told you at the time."

"Yeah..."

"Would you still have done it, do you think? Would you have slept with me, I mean, if you'd known that I was going to leave?"

Adrian paused to think, and his hands stopped moving. "I don't know," he said. "I was gutted when you left. It was awful to have you for a night and then lose you. But... if you'd said, 'Hey, Adrian, we can only have this night,' and then you'd kissed me like you did, and put your hands where you did, I don't know. I think I probably would have just gone with it – I mean, I'm kind of helpless to resist you – but..." He leaned around to kiss my temple. "Maybe not. I've been known to make smart decisions on certain _rare_ occasions."

"And saying no to me would have been smart?" I asked, feeling chastened.

"Well..." he said, sounding a little uncomfortable. "I don't know. Saying that is like saying that I wish Amy hadn't been born, and I can't say that or even think it. So, no. I can't regret what happened." He began massaging my shoulders again. "All I can say is that I wish things had played out with a little less pain, for both of us. But since that was the only night Amy could have been made, I'm glad we made her." He laughed a little. "And not just because making her meant sex with you, although I've got to say that it sweetened the deal." I turned around to hit him lightly on the arm and he grinned widely, showing a little fang. "Although," he added, "I'm a little confused about some of that, to be honest..."

"About what, specifically?" I asked, turning my back to him again.

"First off, what did you mean when you said you 'sensed' that you were pregnant?"

"I don't know," I said, arching my back against his touch. "I just felt something and I knew. It doesn't make a lot of logical sense."

"Women's intuition, or magic?" Adrian asked. "Or is that a dumb question?"

"Maybe all three," I said.

He laughed. "Ok, next question," he said. "How exactly _did_ you get pregnant? I mean, we used a condom. And I was careful with it, both putting it on and taking it off. I saw it after I took it off, and it didn't _look_ broken..."

"I have no idea," I said. "I guess it was fate, or God's will, or something. I mean, she's definitely yours..."

"Obviously," Adrian said. "Unless you slept with another Moroi guy that week." I snorted, and he laughed.

"I don't know it happened," I said, with a little laugh. "All I know for sure is that I didn't exactly plan either of my kids." A silence fell between us, an almost tangible silence, as I realized what I had said. A little too late, I added, "I love them, though. I swear."

"Of course you do," Adrian said. He circled his arms around me, and I lay back against him. "All anyone would have to do is watch you with your daughters to see that." I nodded, and Adrian added, "So, Violet was a little bit of a surprise?"

I swallowed heavily. "Yes," I said. "But the important thing is that I love her. Since the moment she was put in my arms. Even before that. I love her like crazy."

"Obviously," Adrian said, reassuringly.

The truth about how Violet was conceived was kind of awful and I didn't really want to talk about it. So I just let myself lapse into silence. After a few moments, Adrian began rubbing my back again. His fingertips found a small knot in my right trapezius muscle and he began using his knuckles against it.

"Did you take a massage class or something?" I asked.

"Not exactly," Adrian said. "See, there's this guy, Ambrose, a dhampir at court. He sort of dated my aunt." I could hear a tinge of disgust in Adrian's voice as he added, "He's my age, so that makes that relationship a little... squicky. But he actually kind of loved my aunt, and so a few months after she died, once the whole thing with Rose and Tasha got settled, we sort of started chatting. We didn't get to be best friends or anything, but it was nice to have someone around who understood my aunt. Anyway, he was a professional masseuse, and he taught me a few moves. I figure it's an important life skill."

"Mmm-hmmm," I said. "Definitely."

"Are you even listening to me?" Adrian asked, in a low voice near my ear.

"Ambrose. Dhampir. Squicky. Got it." I sighed and leaned forward a little more. Adrian laughed, and for a few moments, I just gave up on talking.

"I know things are sort of messed up," Adrian said, after a while. "But I'm so glad that we're at least... doing whatever it is we're doing."

"Me too," I said.

"I should have found you sooner," he said. "I should have realized there was something wrong. I should have followed you to Utah and taken you away."

I turned around to look at him. "Adrian," I said. "It wouldn't have worked."

"You don't know that," Adrian said. "But ok, even if I didn't do that, then at least I should found you when I came into my money a few years ago. I mean, a detective could have found you in less than a day, I'm sure. I know your maiden name, your birthday, your parents' names, your sisters' names, all sorts of personal details." He paused, thinking about it. "I could have stationed somebody to watch out for you and make your life easier. Like... hmmm... feed the meter whenever you parked, stuff like that." He went on, warming to the theme. "And I could have been your secret admirer, sending you gifts in the mail every month or so. Flowers, clothes, perfume..."

"And Rick would have freaked out about the gifts and would have made my life hell trying to figure out who was sending them."

"Hmm," Adrian said. "I guess. Well, I should have gone to see you, then. Just made myself clear to you and we could have started... this thing we're doing now... sooner."

I shook my head. "We can't sit here and think about what we should have done. We'll go insane."

"I know," Adrian said, resting his hands on my shoulders. "I know."

"Let's talk about something else," I said, moving around on the couch so that I was almost sitting in his lap, my legs curled over his.

"We should," Adrian said, putting his arm around me to draw me even closer. "You know what we should talk about instead?" he added, as if proposing a really fun idea. "We should talk about when I can see you again!"

"I don't know when that can happen," I said. "It's not like I can just sneak away. When I'm not working, I'm looking after Amy and Violet."

"Exactly," Adrian said. "So, some day you can tell Rick you're taking the girls to their doctor appointments or something and take them to see me instead. I can fly down and be ready to meet with you at just the right moment. We'll go to a park or something. Ride on the swings."

"We can't do that," I said. "There are lots of church members in this town. It would get back to Rick. I'm sure of it."

"Ok," Adrian said, equitably. "Clearly, Rick is the problem. So you should just leave Rick and come to live with me..."

"I can't leave the girls!"

"I'm not asking you to," Adrian said, in a tone that implied I was being ridiculous. "I'm saying _you_, as in, _all_ of you. All three of you ladies. I have a guest bedroom, and I can convert the studio room to another bedroom, so each girl can have her own room. I'll paint the walls for them. A custom mural for each of them."

"Adrian..."

"It'll be perfect timing, too, because I just got a new Holo-Wii and need someone to play Mario Fit Bowling with me. It's no fun to play against the computer."

"You know I can't leave Rick," I said.

"Why not?"

"You know why not."

"Actually, I don't," Adrian said. "Because as far as I can tell, all the barriers are gone. We were both afraid to get in touch because we were worried that the other one wouldn't be interested anymore. Well, that turned out to not be a problem. Then you were afraid I'd have a problem with Amy and/or Violet, and, well, ok, it was a surprise, sure, but I'm dealing with it. It helps that they're such great kids. And of course, originally, we couldn't be together because of your alchemist duties, but that's not a problem anymore. So what's left to worry about?"

"I can't just..." I trailed off, not able to finish the sentence.

"Can't stand being a room with a Moroi?" Adrian asked, and caressed my cheek with his hand.

I couldn't help but lean into the touch. "Obviously," I said, in a sigh.

"Right," Adrian said. "We're pretty gross. Imagine kissing one of us."

He leaned forward, and we shared one of those kisses that made me wish we weren't in the middle of a serious conversation. But we were, so after a moment, I pulled away from him. "Look," I said. "The Moroi-human thing is still relevant. I mean, imagine you take me to court with you and introduce me to your friends..."

"If they're really my friends, they won't care who I date," Adrian said. "I mean, Rose married an ex-Strigoi, and Lissa married a guy whose entire family are murderers. Neither of them would have a leg to stand on."

"But they're not the only ones in your life," I said. "And there are the people in _my_ life to think about too."

"Look, I admit it," Adrian said. "It's still a relevant issue, but it's not relevant to how you and I feel about each other. It's only relevant to how other people feel about us, and that really shouldn't be the basis of our decisions."

"Well, there's also Amy to consider," I said. "What if people find out about her?"

"I don't know what the alchemists would do," Adrian admitted. "That's your department. But I can say that she'd be safe from my people. They're not going to force her to train as a Guardian or anything. Lissa's really changed things. Moroi are doing a lot more to defend themselves. So the insane demand for Guardians has decreased a little, and Amy would be fine."

"Oh," I said, thinking about it. "That's good. I remember hearing about that age law they were thinking of passing. It was really barbaric."

"Oh, tell me about it," Adrian said, grimly. "It's one of the issues my aunt got killed over. Though I sort of think it had as much to do with Tasha wanting to hump Belikov as anything else, which is a little hard to deal with. Anyway." He sighed. "The new self-defense trend is pretty cool. Even _I've _been studying self-defense a little!"

"Really? What do _you_ do for self-defense?"

"I can start small fires," Adrian said, proudly.

"With... matches?" I asked.

"No," Adrian said. "With magic."

"You're a spirit-user," I said, confused.

"I'm a spirit _specializer_," Adrian corrected. "Moroi are able to access _all_ the elements a little. That's why people call it 'specializing' in an element, not just... 'using' it." He made a face. "There was this totally crazy girl I knew a while back, maybe a year before I met you, who was a spirit user, but had everyone thinking she specialized in air because she could do a few air tricks." He shook his head, remembering. "God, she was insane. And dangerous. Anyway." He sighed. "So the new trend is to try to branch out a little – except for fire users, who have an obvious advantage. Fire is the best element for battle, of course, and lucky for me, it's only other element I can use without practically giving myself an aneurism. Lissa can do a little with earth, not that she would ever really need to defend herself. But she can make small earthquakes, enough to topple a Strigoi and make it fall over."

"Wow," I said. I found myself wondering if the alchemists already knew this, and then remembered I had no allegiance to them anymore. "It sounds wonderful, Adrian. Such a smart solution."

He smiled. "Next time we have a nice candlelight dinner, I can light the candles," he said. "I might pass out from the effort, though. If I do, please feel free to wake me up in a completely inappropriate manner."

"Adrian," I said, miserably.

"What?"

"Stop talking like that. Stop acting as if we can just start dating. I wish we _could_ have candlelit dinners and all of that. But we can't. Look, we can still see each other in dreams. But even though today was wonderful, we really can't be together in person again."

"Why not?" he asked, leaning forward so that our faces were just an inch or two apart. "Why not, Sydney?"

"Rick won't let me leave with the girls," I said. "I told you that. He's got way too much clout in the legal circuit."

"I'll pay for lawyers to defend you," Adrian said. "I don't care. I'll get the best in the business. And if I have to, I'll use compulsion on the judge to make sure that it plays out like it should."

"Rick will trace the money if you pay," I said. "And once he's got your name, he'll find out the rest. There's no way he could see you, even just a photograph of you, and not figure it all out. The resemblance is so strong. Once it's common knowledge that Amy's a dhampir, her life will be in danger. And not _just_ hers, either. The alchemists will declare me unfit and take Violet away from me by force. My dad will send me to reeducation..."

"I'll protect us," Adrian said, pulling me into his arms. "I won't let it happen. I can 'reeducate' people too, you know. And I have some pretty powerful friends. Like, the frickin' _Queen_, for starters. I saved her sister's life, which in turn, kept her on the throne. She owes me big time. You'll be fine."

"You can't promise that," I said. "The alchemists are more powerful than you'd guess."

Adrian sighed. "You're right about one thing," he said. "I can't _promise_ that we'll all be safe. There's all kinds of dangers in this world. But I think that you're already in danger, living with Rick."

"I'm fine," I said.

"You're miserable," Adrian said. "That's a kind of danger. Believe me. I know something about how dangerous it can be to be really, really, unhappy." I couldn't think of a reply to that, so he went on. "You don't have to decide tonight, sweetheart. Today was a wonderful day, but it was kind of overwhelming for both of us, and we both have a lot to think about. But just promise that you _will_ think about it, ok? About leaving Rick, I mean. Because I think you've been unhappy for so long that you don't even think about happiness like it's an option." He stroked my cheek, very softly, with his fingertips. "And it is," he said. "I can promise you that much."

I leaned against him. "I'll think about it," I said.

"Good," he said. We lay close for a while, and then he broke the silence by asking, "So you really like like the present?" His fingers played with the thin ribbon straps of the negligee.

"It's beautiful," I said. "Really."

"Well, if you don't mind very terribly, could you stand up so I can see how it looks on you?"

Smiling wryly, I stood up and did a little turn so he could look at me from every angle.

"Now you've given _me_ something to think about," he said, with a grin. "Come here," he added, holding out his hand. "I think I missed a few spots when I was rubbing your back before."

I took his hand and let him pull me back down to the couch. "Like what spots?" I asked.

He grinned and put his hand... somewhere.

"Ohh," I said. "_Ohhhhhh_."


	9. Dream, Interrupted

_Hey, guys. Sorry for the long delay. I've just been going through some rough stuff in my real life that made writing difficult. Then on top of that I caught that flu thing and I've been sleeping 20 hours a day. But this whole time I've been thinking through exactly how I want the end to play out, and I put in another minor story arc that I think was necessary to address some issues and make the end more interesting (I hope). Literally the entire rest of it is pretty well drafted so for the rest of the story, updates should come maybe every 2-3 days. xo_

**Chapter 9: Dream, Interrupted**

"Ok, girls," I said. "Three, two, one..." I pushed the record button and nodded encouragingly.

"Hi, Mr. Adrian," said Violet, in her grave little voice. She was beaming and holding up her present from Adrian: the ZOMG Tablet, a tablet computer that had just come out this season. It was huge when it was unfolded, but could fold up to the size of a small paperback book. It had even come with a cover that made it look exactly like a paperback, in fact, so Violet would be able to hide it on her bookshelf, away from Rick's prying eyes. "I love my present," she said. "It's the best present I ever got."

I had gotten into the frame by then, and I sat in between the two girls. They were both in their new "Christmas" pajamas and looked adorable. "Thank you, Adrian," I said. "It's the perfect present for Violet."

"And thank you for the Tricorder!" Amy said, ecstatically. "It's the best thing ever ever." She held it up to demonstrate. It was a new gadget that took its name from a Star Trek device, apparently – it could scan objects and detect what they were composed of, and identify most species of animals and plants. It was one of the hottest new gizmos this year, and I already could imagine Amy spending hours outside scanning every leaf, twig, and bug in sight.

"And thanks for all my presents," I said. "As you can see, the sweater fits." He had gotten me a very soft cashmere sweater, the kind that I'd always wanted but that Rick didn't see room in the budget for. "And the coffee was delicious."

"Mommy already drank the whole pot," Violet said, rolling her eyes.

"It's ok, it's decaffeinated," Amy says. "It says so on the package."

"Yes," I said. "Decaffeinated." Adrian had gotten me a sampler of amazing gourmet coffee, and had brilliantly labeled every one as 'decaffeinated' – though a small note in the box had explained that the coffee was in fact full of caffeine, as God and nature had intended. The labels were just there in case Rick saw, because he had banned caffeine from the house.

"Mommy liked the coffee so much, she took her mug into the shower," Violet said.

"Really?" Amy said.

"Well, I didn't drink it _in_ the shower," I said. "I sort of leaned around the curtain... Anyway, I love the bracelet, too!" I held it up for the camera. It was a gorgeous silver bracelet with four sparkling charms dangling from it at intervals: a red flower, a purple flower, a sun, and a green clover. Violet and Amy had explained that the red and purple flowers were from them – they were an amaryllis and a violet, of course – and that the sun and clover were from Adrian, as was the bracelet itself. I had a feeling that Adrian may have misrepresented the prices of the flower charms, as the girls' budget was only ten dollars, and these clearly cost quite a bit more.

"We explained about the sun and clover," Amy said, proudly. "The sun is Mom, and the clover is you!"

"I still don't understand why Adrian is a clover," I said.

"Because his birthday is the day after St. Patrick's day, and his lucky color is green," Amy said. "Duh."

"Right," I said.

"And because he's good luck," Violet said.

"I can't argue with that," I said. "And in any case, it's beautiful. Thank you. We had a great Christmas, and a lot of that was because of you. So –"

"Don't forget the cinnamon soap, Mommy," Violet said, interrupting me.

"Oh, yes," I said. "Thank you for that, too." Adrian had also gotten me a bottle of cinnamon and sugar scented body wash from one of those expensive bath stores that I was always a little intimidated to go into. Leave it to Adrian to know more about skin care than I did. "I used some this morning, and it was great."

"She still smells like cinnamon," Amy said.

"So thank you again," I said. "We never had such a great Christmas."

"I hope we see you soon," Violet said.

"Yes, me too," Amy said.

"Bye," I said, and we all waved.

Then I got up and retrieved the phone, ended the recording, and hit the "delete last three seconds" button to clean it up a little. It only took a moment to upload the video and send it off to "Jet Steel."

"That was fun," Amy said.

"Yes," I said. "It was a good idea, girls."

"Will he see this one?" Amy asked.

"Yes, of course," I said, and then realized why she had asked that. All the other videos we had made for him hadn't exactly reached him in a timely manner. "He really will, sweetheart. I already sent it to his phone."

"Good," Amy said, satisfied.

"Did you make another video?" Violet asked, confused. "Was I still asleep?"

"Oh, no, honey, don't worry," I said. "This is the first video we made today."

Violet frowned. "Ok," she said. "But don't make any without me. Mister Adrian is my friend."

"I know, sweetheart," I said. "Anyway, girls, we should clean up now, and then you can spend the whole rest of the day playing with your new toys!"

The girls frowned at the mention of cleaning, but perked up at the idea of playing, and set to the task of cleaning with energy. While they found and disposed of every scrap of wrapping paper, I made a quick call to a few people I knew from church to make up a story about a terrible headache that had kept us out of church today, in case anyone was wondering where I had been. Then I brought my laptop into the playroom to do some translation work while their girls played with their new toys.

"You have less iron in your body than I do," I heard Amy say. I looked up to see her scanning Violet's hand with the new Tricorder gadget.

"Scan Mommy," Violet suggested, and I obediently held out my hand.

"That's so weird," Amy said. "You two are the same. But I have more iron. I also have more oxygen..."

"It's probably just because you're so active with gymnastics," I said.

"I wish I could scan Dad," Amy said. "But he'd just take it away..."

"He would," I said. "Both of you know not to tell Dad about the fun stuff from this weekend, right? Especially not Adrian."

"He'd be jealous," Violet said. "Mister Adrian is much handsomer than Daddy."

"Shhh," I said. "Let me work, ok, girls?"

They pouted, but went back to their game. For a while, they even went outside to see if they could identify any new species of animals, and then came inside to analyze their results on Violet's new ZOMG. I had fun just watching them. I had rarely seen them so engaged and happy.

A few hours later, a door slammed open and closed, announcing Rick's re-arrival home. We called our hellos to him, and he came into the playroom to say hi to all of us. The girls hurriedly hid their gadgets under other toys and gave him a hug. To my surprise, he was carrying a bouquet of red roses for me.

"Some beautiful flowers for my beautiful wife," he said, holding them out.

"Wow," I said. "Thank you. Let me go put them in some water."

"How are you feeling?" he asked, putting his hand on my belly.

"I feel great," I said. "Thank you for asking. How was business?"

"Business?" he asked.

"The case," I said.

"Oh, yeah," he said. "I think we're going to win this one."

"Great," I said. "You always do! Anyway, I better put these in water before they wilt."

I carried the flowers into the kitchen and found a vase. I'd never been _that_ into roses, but they were very pretty, and seemed pretty expensive. I wondered what had inspired him to such heights of romanticism. I snipped off the ends of the stems, then dropped a tablet of aspirin into the water to help preserve the flowers. Then I turned around to see Rick standing there, watching me, and jumped a little in surprise.

"Oh!" I said. "Sorry! You startled me."

"You look beautiful today," he said, but there was little warmth to his tone. It was almost as if he resented having to say it.

"Thanks," I said.

"Maybe it's the pregnancy that brings out that glow," he said.

"Maybe," I said.

He got closer. "Where did that bracelet come from?"

"Oh," I said. "It's just a little charm bracelet. I saw it at the drugstore and picked it up on a whim."

"Vanity, thy name is woman," he said, and laughed.

"That's a misquote, actually," I said, and immediately regretted it.

"What?" Rick said, a weird smile on his face.

"Never mind," I said. "It doesn't matter."

"No," he said. "I really want to hear this. What's the correct quote?"

"It's from Shakespeare," I said. "From _Hamlet_. Hamlet says, 'frailty, thy name is woman.'"

"Good to know," Rick said. "Thanks for the lesson." His smile was cold and dangerous, like an icicle hanging right over my head.

"No big deal," I said, smiling. "I guess I was pretty vain when I bought the bracelet."

He took my hand and examined my bracelet, though he seemed to be more interested in my wrist itself. "Vain _and_ frail, as it happens," he said. "Look at your wrist. Such tiny fragile bones." Then he jerked his hand away. "Hey, I got a shock!"

"I hate that," I said. "Happens a lot in the winter, I guess. So, what would you like for dinner tonight?"

"You shouldn't be on your feet, honey," he said. "Let me order in."

"The girls don't really like Chinese," I said. "Maybe we could get pizza instead..."

"Oh, everyone likes Chinese," Rick said. "I'll ask for extra fortune cookies."

"Ok," I said, a smile plastered on my face. "And thanks again for the roses. They're beautiful."

"Anything for mother of my children," Rick said. "Which reminds me, I got presents for the girls." He left, heading in the general direction of the playroom. A few moments later, the girls came parading into the kitchen, holding up new t-shirts to show them off. I could tell right away that they were far too small. Rick never seemed to remember how quickly the girls were growing, and nearly always got them shirts a few sizes too small. Violet would probably fit into the t-shirt he'd gotten for Amy, and the one he'd gotten for Violet would have to be given away to charity.

Rick seemed annoyed that the t-shirts wouldn't fit, as if it was the girls' fault for growing so quickly. Then to change the subject, he quizzed me and the girls on why we hadn't made it to church that morning. But the girls performed really well under interrogation, and Rick didn't catch on to our real activities, thankfully. So we passed through the rest of the afternoon and evening without anything bad happening.

That night, as Rick and I got ready for bed, he mentioned that he would be going away again the following weekend.

"Back to Atlanta?" I asked, trying not to sound _too_ pleased.

"Yeah," he said. "I'll leave Friday morning and come back on Sunday night."

"Oh," I said. "For a case?"

"What else would it be for besides a case?" Rick asked.

"I don't know," I said. "I was just making conversation. Look, let's not fight, ok? I want to get a good night's sleep. For the baby."

"Oh," he said. "Sure. Right. Get a good night's sleep."

"Thanks for understanding," I said, trying to keep the sarcasm out of my voice. We both got into bed, and I turned out the light.

It took a little while to get to sleep. It was always difficult to fall asleep when Rick was next to me. When he was awake, I was worried that he might try to initiate sex. When he was asleep, he snored. But despite this, I managed to slip into a dream, where, of course, I found Adrian waiting.

I ran to him through a mist, and as we embraced each other, our surroundings resolved into his living room in Pennsylvania, which I recognized easily by now. We sat down on the couch and kissed our hellos for a little longer than maybe was strictly necessary. Then we relaxed into a cuddle to talk.

"Thank you for the video," he said. "I loved it. Best thing ever."

"I'm glad you liked it," I said. "The girls loved their presents. How did you know what they wanted?"

"Easy," Adrian said. "I bribed Santa Claus."

"You... what?"

"I bribed Santa Claus," he repeated. "At the mall. I got him to tell me what they said..."

I started to laugh. "Of course you did," I said. "That's perfect."

"I had only met them that day," Adrian said. "I had to cheat a _little_. But they liked their presents?"

"They loved them," I said. "They spent all day scanning things and analyzing them."

He smiled. "Good. I've got some ideas for Violet's birthday, too. That's in a few weeks, right?"

"You don't have to send anything..."

"I know," he said. "But it'll be fun." I started to interrupt him, but he went on blithely. "What about you? Did you like your presents?"

"They were perfect, too," I said. "Of course."

"Good," he said. He squeezed me to him. "I'm glad you enjoyed it all. Did you really drink the coffee in the shower?"

"Not _in_ the shower," I said. "I left the mug on the sink and sort of leaned over to take sips..." Adrian was staring at me like I was crazy. "I didn't want it to get cold!" I said.

"Perfectly reasonable," he said, nodding, then kissed me. "Oh hey," he said, when we separated. "Are you ok with hanging out here today?" He gestured around him. "We can go somewhere else if you want, but I kind of like hanging out with you in my living room. I like to pretend that this is real life and you just are... here."

"It'd be nice," I said.

"Yeah, as if you just came over for the afternoon. Or even better, like you live here. And the girls are just out for the afternoon, doing something fun."

"Having a playdate, maybe," I said.

"They could be visiting with Rose's kids," Adrian said. "Her two boys are about the same age."

I laughed. "Amy thinks boys are yucky," I said.

"What about Violet?"

"I'm not sure," I said. "I think she kind of likes boys."

Adrian laughed. "Then we better keep her away from Rose's boys," he said. "They're pretty charming. They've got blue eyes like Christian, but dark hair and olive skin like Rose. And they've got Dimitri's mannerisms. Any day now he's going to buy them each a duster and that'll be that."

I grinned, picturing it. "They sound adorable," I said.

"Yeah," Adrian said, smiling. "They're going to grow up to be absolute lady killers like their Uncle Adrian." He gave me a sheepish look. "Sorry. They feel kind of like nephews to me, you know? I was pretty sure I'd never have kids of my own, so I sort of let Rose and Lissa's kids become my family." He looked down at our joined hands. "That probably sounds kind of weird," he said.

"No," I said. "Not at all. I think we all make the family we need."

He looked at me intently. "Who's in your family?" he asked.

"It's pretty much just me and the girls," I said. "And um, now, you. Sort of."

"But not Rick," Adrian said.

"Come on," I said. "You know that I don't feel like that about him."

"Then why don't you leave him?"

"You know _that_ too."

Adrian nodded. "I've heard your argument," he said. "Anyway. Is the Rick-free time over? Did he come home today?"

"Yes," I said. I told him about Rick's return, and the flowers and t-shirts.

"Does he usually bring you flowers?" Adrian asked. When I admitted that this was the first time in years that Rick had gotten me flowers, Adrian gave me a meaningful look.

"What?" I asked, exasperated.

"See?" he said.

"See _what_?"

"It's like I told you. He's cheating on you."

"Because he brought me flowers?"

"God, Sage. Haven't you ever seen any movie or TV show ever? That's what men do. When they feel guilty, they bring flowers."

"So if you bring me flowers someday, I should be worried?"

"No," he said. "Because if I bring you flowers, it's only because I'm insanely in love with you. Rick isn't insanely in love with you. He's just... insane. So he has no reason to bring flowers – other than guilt."

"He could be just concerned about the baby," I said. "Maybe he wants to keep me happy for the baby's sake."

"The fake baby," Adrian said.

"Yes," I said. There was a long pause, and then I said, "I'm really going to have to end the charade pretty soon."

"How will Rick react?"

"Not well," I said. "He wants a big family. He has no idea I use contraception."

"You don't want more children?"

"I don't want any more with Rick," I said.

"But if it was someone else... like, for example, a certain sexy Moroi guy..."

"Adrian..."

"Exactly who I was thinking of!" Adrian said, grinning. "If it was Adrian, would you feel differently about more kids?"

"Maybe," I said. "But that's impossible, so can we please just drop the subject?"

"_Thud_," Adrian said. "See? That was me, dropping the subject."

"Right."

"It was noisy," Adrian said. "Because it was heavy. When I dropped it, it went 'thud.'"

"Shut up," I said, and kissed him.

"Shutting... up..." he said, between kisses.

"You're not shutting up enough," I said, and bit his lip.

He sort of growled and pressed me down... and then things got very hazy. In fact, things seemed to be dissolving completely.

"Adrian?" I called, and then reached around me, but there was nothing...

… and I was sitting up in my bed.

It took a moment for me to get my bearings back, but once I did, I realized that Adrian must have been woken up by accident. Just when it was getting good, too. I sighed and rolled over, trying to get back to sleep, but it was no use. Rick was snoring away next to me, and I was wide-awake. After about ten minutes of tossing and turning, I finally decided to go downstairs and make myself some chamomile tea.

As the water began to boil, I sat down at the kitchen table to think about what I'd been talking to Adrian about. Could I really leave Rick? It seemed more desirable every day, but no more possible than it ever had. Did I want more kids? I pictured another child in my arms, maybe a boy this time. A dhampir boy... I was thinking about what I'd name him when someone sneezed - someone under the table.

I looked down and a pair of bright green eyes looked up at me.

"Um, hi," Amy said.

"Amaryllis Tatiana Resnick," I said, in a harsh whisper. "What are you doing out of bed at this hour?"

"Nothing," she said.

"What are you hiding behind your back?"

"Nothing."

"Show me your hands." There was the sound of something falling to the ground and then Amy held out her hands. I ordered her to get out from under the table, and when she did, I could see what she had been hiding.

"_Oh_," I said, and sighed. I looked over at Amy to see her watching my expression as it changed from anger, to annoyance, to understanding. "Fine," I said, after a moment. "Pick that up and let's go talk in the playroom."

_Hello again. So like I said I have the 'flu and I'm not sure if this is any good. I've read it over and over and I honestly can't tell. But it's close anyway. Please be kind to me... I might rewrite it a tiny bit in a few days when I'm feeling better – you guys probably noticed by now that I usually rewrite stuff over and over after I post it – but I just really wanted to put up a chapter because I want to accomplish _something_ with my day other than eating a bowl of cereal. _


	10. Dream, Resumed

**Chapter 10: Dream Resumed**

It took a while to get back to sleep after my conversation with Amy. When I finally drifted off, I found myself in the front hall of Adrian's apartment. I was about to call for him when I noticed what I was wearing: a little pleated khaki dress that looked like a parody of a mechanic's outfit, complete with a tool belt and a name tag that read "Sydney." I was reminded of countless Halloween costumes I'd seen girls wearing over the years – "Sexy Firefighter," "Flirty Cop," and "Naughty Nurse." This must be the "Hot Mechanic" costume, because the skirt barely covered my behind and the top was so tight I was practically falling out of it. I was also wearing some high-heeled "work boots," as if _that_ made any sense. Who fixes cars in thigh-high stilettos? To complete the look, I was covered here and there with black smudges of grease, including one in the center of my cleavage. How on earth would I have gotten a smudge _there_?

"Adrian?" I called. "What is going on–"

"Oh, you're home early," he called, and came down the hall. He was shirtless and barefoot, and his dark jeans rode low on his hips. His bare chest was covered in artistically placed paint splotches. He picked me up in a hug and spun me around. "Did you have a hard day at work, sweetheart?" he asked. "I've got a casserole baking in the oven for us, for later."

"Um, what is going on here?" I asked, as he let me down.

He looked from left to right quickly, as if making sure no one was listening, then said, very quietly near my ear, "I thought we could play mechanic and artist. You're the hard-working mechanic, home from a long day at work. You're tired and sore and so, so, _dirty_." He leaned forward and kissed my neck once, lingeringly, then leaned away and went on, in the same conspiratorial voice. "I'm the brilliant artist who's been locked up in my room painting all day. I'm tired and dirty, too. We both need a really long, really _hot_, shower." He gave me a meaningful look and wiggled his eyebrows.

"Adrian," I said, trying to keep a straight face. There was a certain charm to his scenario, I had to admit, but I had something serious on my mind. Also, the stilettos were already starting to hurt my feet.

"We only have an hour or so before our daughters come home from their piano lesson," he said, taking my hand and pulling me gently towards the hallway that led to his bathroom. "Let's get those dirty clothes off of you."

"Ok, I admit it, this sounds fun," I said. "But we can't –"

"Oh, I know we can't have sex," Adrian said, making a face briefly. "You and your _vows_. But there's all sorts of fun things we can do in a hot shower." He grinned and scooped me up into his arms and began walking down the hall. "There's something kind of hot about doing those things with you while your jerkface of a husband is lying next to you in the bed..."

It was difficult not to smile, and even more difficult to turn down Adrian's offer, but I really _did_ have to talk to him. "Let's play artist and mechanic next time," I said. "Right now we have to talk about our daughter and her little night time phone call."

"Right now?"

"Right now," I confirmed.

"Fine," he said, pouting a little, and let me back down. We went back to his living room and sat down on his couch, and he watched me with obvious delight as I took off the boots. When I was done, he handed me a pair of slippers, which I put on. Then we sat on the couch facing each other, and I summoned up a bathrobe to put on over my absurd outfit since it was impossible to sit down in a skirt that short. I tried to clear my mind so that we could talk about Amy, but when I looked at him, I was distracted by the paint splatters on his chest. And, well, his chest in general.

"Don't worry," he said, following my gaze. "The paint's dry." He ran a finger over it to prove it.

"I wasn't worried about that," I said, and lightly touched a splatter of purple paint. "I was just thinking – that's more or less how you looked the night we... you know."

"The night we made Amy," Adrian said, his hand running along my cheek softly. I nodded. "I was painting when you knocked on the door," he said. We both looked at each other for a moment, remembering. Then Adrian said, "You know, I never finished that painting. It's in storage. After you left, I just couldn't..."

"I'm sorry," I said, for what felt like the millionth time.

Adrian shrugged. "Water under the bridge, I guess," he said, then his expression brightened. "You know, when you finally leave Rick, one of the first things I'll do is get that painting out of storage and finish it."

"You sound confident that I'll leave him," I said.

"I am," he said. "After all, I have a little secret agent on my side. Pretty sure she's rooting for a change in the status quo, at least."

"Amy," I said.

"That's the one," Adrian said. "So, how did you catch her?"

"I went downstairs to make some tea," I said. "She was hiding under the table. She tried to hide the phone, but of course I saw it."

Adrian was obviously trying to suppress a smile and doing an awful job of it. "She said you'd hidden it, but she found it..."

"It was in an inside compartment of my purse!" I said, indignantly. "She used _your_ tricorder to help find it!"

Adrian burst out laughing. "Oh my god, I love that kid," he said. "She's a rebel, like her mother."

"Like her _father_," I corrected.

"Like both of us," he said. "You know what she said, when I answered the phone?"

"What?" I asked, warily.

"She said, 'Sorry to wake you up, Mr. Steel, it's me, Amy Reznick.' She must have seen what the number was listed as, in the phone."

"Oh God..."

"And I said, 'You can call me Adrian if you want. Jet Steel is just a made-up name.' And she laughed and said I was cool for a grown-up. She's got a great laugh, even when she's trying to be quiet so she doesn't wake up her mom."

"What else did you two talk about?"

"Hmm. Well, she said she thought I'd be awake because at the mall I told her that I stay up late most night. I told her that I did _usually_ stay up late, and that it was ok that she called. Then she asked if I got the video you guys made today, and I said yes, and that I was glad that she liked the presents. Then we made fun of you a little for drinking coffee in the shower – "

"Hey!"

" – and then we talked about some weird species of bug she found with her tricorder. And then she asked if I had ever gotten all the other videos that you guys made over the years, and I said yes, that I only got them recently, but that I had gotten them. And then she asked if I was going to come visit sometime, like for Violet's birthday."

"What did you tell her?"

"Just that I wanted to visit, but that it was up to her mother."

"Anything else?"

Adrian looked a little uncomfortable. "Well, she did ask who I really was. She asked if I was her uncle or something. And I said, no, I wasn't her uncle. And then she must have heard you coming down the stairs or something, because she said, 'Gotta go, bye!' and hung up. So I was sort of saved by the bell there."

I let that all sink in. I should have known that Amy wasn't going to let the mystery of Adrian just slip by. All her life, she'd known that there was someone special our there, someone named Adrian – of course meeting him was going to pique her interest. But what on earth could I do? I leaned against Adrian's paint-splattered chest and sighed.

"What's going on in that massive brain of yours, sweetheart?" Adrian asked.

"I'm just thinking... I don't know what to do," I said.

"You mean with Amy? I hope you won't punish her..."

"No, I didn't have the heart. I just meant, I don't know what to do about... this. This situation. I mean, she obviously wants a relationship with you. She has no idea what you are to her, but she still wants you around, for whatever reason. She wants you in her life badly enough to sneak out of bed and call you in the middle of the night. And I know that you want a relationship with her. And the truth is, I'd love it if she had someone like you in her life. She doesn't need expensive presents. She just needs..."

"An actual father," Adrian said.

"Yes," I said, and unaccountably, my eyes were full of tears.

"Well, she has me," Adrian says. "And for what it's worth, so does Violet, if she wants me. I have no idea what I'm doing, but I'll try my best. At the very least I won't try to kill their turtles. So don't cry, Sydney. Ok? Don't cry."

"I've just gotten us into such a jam," I said, and dabbed at the edges of my eyes. "I don't know how to get out of it now. A lot of family court judges in the district know Rick and respect him. He's not above bribery to get what he wants. He'd bribe the judge if he has to. He'd find people who'd say that I was a drug user, a child abuser, whatever he wanted them to say, all so he could keep the kids. If I left him, I'd never see Amy or Violet again."

"I've got some tricks up my sleeve, too," Adrian said. "And if he's cheating on you, then he won't have a leg to stand on."

"I don't know if I can risk it," I said. "If they got taken away from me, I wouldn't be able to protect them from him at all. He'd break them into pieces."

"If he got custody, we'd take them away and hide somewhere. I hear Costa Rica is pretty. You speak Spanish, don't you?"

"Of course I do, but that's not the point. We couldn't hide in Costa Rica. We couldn't even hide at the North Pole. You can't hide from the alchemists, and believe me, Rick would get the alchemists on the case."

"We'd go live at court then," he said. "The queen would protect us."

I shook my head. "I'm not going to start a war between the Moroi and the alchemists all just because I want to leave my husband."

"So you're saying it's hopeless?" Adrian said. "You brought this whole thing up to say it's hopeless?"

"It's not completely hopeless," I said. "I mean, there has to be hope."

"Well, it's not as if Rick is entirely blameless," Adrian said. "All you have to do is get proof of the affair. That could really help your case."

"True," I said. "If he actually is having an affair."

"Why don't you think he is?"

"Because he just doesn't seem into that sort of thing," I said. "I can't explain it. He's not into romance or even sex, really. He's just into... power."

"Then maybe he's into the power of having an affair," Adrian said. "In any case, all signs point to yes on this matter."

"I guess," I said. "And if he leaves me for her, that would probably make a lot of people in the church pretty angry. Even if I took the kids at that point, I don't know if my dad would sign off on hunting me down."

"Well, isn't that a ray of light," Adrian said.

"Yeah, I know," I said. "In any case, whatever chance we have, nothing's going to change very soon."

"So what happens in the meantime?"

"I was thinking maybe... visits," I said, slowly.

Adrian's face lit up. "Really? Visits?"

"Really, really careful ones," I said. "Maybe every two months or something. Like, maybe in February sometime, when Rick goes out of town, we could meet in DC again."

"I'd love that," Adrian said.

"And... maybe on nights that Rick works late, we can do a video chat," I said. "There's some alchemist technology that can hide internet activity, so that Rick can't find the records."

"That would be great," Adrian said. "Really. I'm not going to give up on the idea of you leaving him, but this is a great start."

"Ok," I said, and leaned forward to hug him. We held each other for a while, and the longer that I had my arms around him, the more I became aware of the spicy smell of his cologne, the warmth of his skin, the buzzing in my ears growing louder... Just a few minutes ago, we'd been discussing the impossibility of the divorce, the gloom and doom predictions of losing custody of my children, and now all I wanted to do was find out how his neck tasted.

"Is that all we needed to talk about?" Adrian asked, near my ear.

"More or less," I said.

"Well, ok then," Adrian said, and kissed me, first on the cheek, then on the neck, then on the lips. I started to feel a little dizzy. "Hey, mechanic girl," he growled. "Aren't you really tired and sore after a long day at work?"

"You forgot dirty," I said, taking off the bathrobe. Suddenly, this silly game didn't seem silly at all. "I'm just _covered_ in grease and stuff."

"That's awful," Adrian said, his finger running along the smudge of grease between my breasts. "Just awful. Maybe you need a hot shower."

"We better hurry," I said. "I think we only have an hour or so before the girls get home from their piano lessons."

"The instructor called," Adrian said. "They're staying late today. We've got at least two hours. We can take our time." But we almost ran down the hall towards the bathroom.

_A/N: Ok, hands up if you want to play "Artist and Mechanic" with Adrian... _

_Seriously, this was only going to be like a paragraph in a longer chapter about stuff that happens between now and sort of the last bit of the story but then I pictured Adrian wanting to sort of play at being married, in his own Adrian-ish way. And this chapter came out. _

_There's maybe four or five more chapters to go, and most of them will be a lot longer than this one. _


	11. Missing Something

**Chapter 11: Missing Something?**

In December, Adrian and I chose the first weekend in February as a tentative date for our in-person visit. Once the date was in my mental calender, the weeks in between passed slowly, so maddeningly slowly, that it almost seemed that time was going backward. But as always, Adrian brightened nearly every day.

Christmas passed quietly, with a long church service and then a quiet gathering of some of our friends from church. But the girls and I found a few minutes to video chat with Adrian. He said that seeing our pretty faces was the best Christmas gift of all, and even though it was a pretty cheesy line, it made us all smile.

On New Year's Eve, Rick dragged me to a party at a friend's house, where I had to play the role of devoted wife. We went home not long after midnight, which was fine with me, because the party I really wanted to attend was elsewhere.

As soon as I was asleep, I found myself with Adrian. He looked amazing in a tailored tuxedo, his hair slicked back neatly. He had dreamed up a gorgeous gown for me – champagne gold silk, tight against my body, and cut daringly low in the back. We were in an outdoor area that was covered by a metal platform, and I soon recognized the view.

"This is _Paris_," I said. "We're on the first level of the Eiffel Tower, aren't we?"

Adrian handed me a glass of champagne, which I accepted. "Exactly right," he said. "And the fireworks should be starting soon." He kissed me, his hands stroking the bare skin on my back. Moments later, an invisible orchestra started playing, and we danced slowly, revolving on the otherwise empty dance floor, as the fireworks lit up the sky. "Someday we'll be here for real on New Year's Eve," Adrian said, by my ear. "We'll show these Parisians how it's done."

"Maybe," I said, and held him tighter. "But I'm glad we're here now."

We celebrated with another countdown, ignoring the fact that France celebrated its New Years several hours before the East Coast of the US did. Then Adrian took us to a beautiful hotel room, where we rang in the New Year with a few activities that weren't strictly speaking "sex" but sure came pretty close. Needless to say, it was the best New Year's Eve I'd had in my entire life.

Once the holidays were behind me, I knew it was time to take care of some much less pleasant tasks. Well, one particularly unpleasant task – doing something about this fake pregnancy. It wasn't that difficult – I just waited for Rick to go out of town for a few days, and while he was gone, I set up a few necessary props. When he got home, he couldn't help but notice the suspicious blood stains in the sheets by the washing machine, and I "confessed" that I'd had a miscarriage. Then I put my head down and sobbed, and Rick sat by me and awkwardly said things like, "I'm not mad at you" and "We can always try again."

At least I didn't have to _act_ upset – I legitimately _was_ upset. I felt awful about the whole situation. I hated that I'd had to pretend to be pregnant to give myself some protection from my husband. I hated having to create fake blood stains to get myself out of my lie. I knew that in real life, a miscarriage was usually a sad time for a woman, and I didn't want mock it, or cheapen it. But since this was the mess I'd gotten myself into, I had to do it, and all I could do was promise myself that I would never put myself in this jam ever again.

After the "miscarriage," Rick was kind and solicitous to me for a few days, but pretty soon the insults began again, in greater quantity. Now, on top of everything else, I was "barren." Barren, and _old_. Rick started working late even more often than he had before, which was fine for me and the girls, but a little unnerving, nonetheless. We were never quite sure when he'd get home, or what mood he'd be in when he got there.

Violet's seventh birthday was a bright spot in the last week of January. It was hard to believe that my baby was turning seven, but I was determined for her to have a great time, or at least the best time she could have under the circumstances. I planned a small family party for her, since the church frowned on lavish birthday celebrations. We had pizza with Violet's favorite toppings, and then Violet blew out her candles – she got all seven with one breath. After that, she began opening the presents we'd gotten for her. Unfortunately, that was when Rick began casually mentioning how much more fun the party would have been if only we'd had more children. Violet and Amy didn't know about the "miscarriage," and they didn't really understand the exact meaning of Rick's jabs. However, they still picked up on the negative atmosphere, and Violet in particular wilted. But again, Adrian saved the day, even from hundreds of miles away. When I tucked Violet into bed that night, I gave her the present that Adrian had mailed to me at my work address. It was a collection of hard-to-find back issues of _Highlights_ magazine, Violet's favorite. Adrian had found every single edition that had been published during Violet's lifetime, and she was so touched that Adrian had gone to such lengths for her that she forgot all about her uncomfortable birthday dinner. She spent the next few days reading the magazines with a huge smile on her face.

As for me, I had a smile on my face, too, more often than not, despite all the reasons I had for despair. Nothing Rick did could change the fact that February was getting closer and closer. And it couldn't change the fact that Adrian and I were getting closer and closer, too. We spent almost every night together in dreams, and it began to feel as if he were part of my waking life, as well. He got songs stuck in my head. He told me jokes that made me giggle for days. And he did things to me that could turn my cheeks red if I happened to remember them when I was trying to do something normal, like cook dinner.

And oh, those things he did to me... I was starting to feel like one of Pavlov's dogs, trained to drool just at the scent of his cologne. Truth be told, as the weeks went on, it grew more and more difficult to withstand the temptation to make love. We were both adults, and neither of us was a virgin. We'd even had sex with each other before. My memory of that night back in Palm Springs– even amidst the sadness that I'd felt at the time – was enough to make me feel hot and tingly all over. But while we kept getting closer and closer to the real thing, I just couldn't ignore my vows, made before God and my family. I knew that the things I did with Adrian weren't at all the actions of a faithful wife, but still, I felt that actually having sex, even in a dream, was a step I just couldn't live with. I knew that this situation would be untenable in the long run, and that sooner or later, something would have to change.

And then, something did.

It was the Friday that we were supposed to drive up to Washington, DC to visit with Adrian. Rick had left for a business trip that morning, and the plan that Adrian and I had devised was for me to leave with the girls once they got home from school. We were going to drive up to DC, check into our hotel room, and have dinner with Adrian. Then we'd spend all day on Saturday, as well as Sunday morning, with him, then leave on Sunday afternoon to be home in time for Rick's return. I hadn't told the girls about the plan, just in case it fell through at the last minute. But now that the day had finally arrived, I couldn't wait for them to get off the school bus so I could finally tell them all about it, and see their happy smiles.

But the bus came and went, and there was no sign of Violet or Amy.

Stunned, I stood there for a moment, as if maybe the bus would turn back around, or as if they would just appear from behind a tree. But of course they didn't, and the bus was long gone. I stumbled back to the house, forcing myself to stay calm. There had to be an explanation. Maybe they had just missed the bus. Maybe they were staying late at school. Maybe they were sick, waiting for me at the school nurse's office.

I took a few long, steadying breaths, and then I called the school. A secretary confirmed that both girls had been at school all day, and that to the best of anyone's knowledge, they had both gotten on the bus. At the very least, they weren't at the school any more.

"Maybe they're just on a spontaneous play-date," the secretary said. "You should call their friend's parents, track 'em down." She sounded unconcerned.

I thanked her politely, hung up the phone, and sank to my knees on the kitchen floor, hand on the golden cross at my neck. This was my nightmare. There was only one reason I could think of for someone to take my children, only one group of people who would do it, and they were the one group that I felt completely powerless against.

"My babies," I whispered, then fell silent again. The hush over the house was somehow deafening, like a rushing river of air.

With great effort, I schooled myself to calm down. I told myself that they were probably just playing somewhere. When I found them, I promised myself, I would hug them and kiss them for a long time, and then ground both of them until they were 20.

They were ok. They had to be ok. But then... where were they?

The school secretary's suggestion didn't hold any water for me. For one thing, while Amy might be spontaneous, Violet was unlikely to do anything without asking me first. It was also hard to fathom any parent picking up one or both of my daughters and not calling me to tell me about it. Besides, while Amy and Violet loved each other, they didn't have a lot of friends in common. Where could _both_ of them have gone?

I thought of one possible solution that made me briefly hopeful: maybe they were with Adrian. It was possible that he had driven all the way down to us and dropped by the school to get the girls. It would be incredibly irresponsible of the school to let an unknown adult take children, but Adrian had his ways, so it wasn't impossible. And though he could be wonderfully thoughtful, he wasn't used to the life of a parent, so maybe he would have thought it'd be funny to surprise me. I went to my purse to get the "Jet Steel" phone, and dialed the only stored number.

"Sweetheart!" Adrian said happily, as he answered the phone. "How are you? Are you on the road yet?"

"No," I said, in a near whisper.

Immediately, he picked up on my mood. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"The girls aren't with you, by any chance, are they?"

"No, they're not... What's going on?"

"They didn't get off the bus," I said, in a strangely high pitched voice. "I was waiting for them at the bus stop and the bus came and the other kids got off the bus but Amy and Violet didn't get off the bus and I was standing there and the bus left. And they weren't there."

"And you can't think of where they'd be? A friend's house, or something?"

"No," I said. "Really. There isn't any place that they could be." I gulped again. It felt as if there wasn't enough air in the room. "I can call all of Amy and Violet's friends, just to be sure, but everything in me says that I'm not going to find them that way."

"What's your theory, sweetheart? What do you think happened?"

"I think someone took them," I said, surprising myself by saying the words out loud. "But I can't go to the police. They wouldn't listen to me, for one thing, and for another, I think the people who took the girls... Well, the police wouldn't be able to help because my guess is that it was... it was..."

"The alchemists," Adrian said, articulating my greatest fear.

"Yes," I whispered.

There was a brief pause, then Adrian said, "Listen. This is what's going to happen. You, my love, are the strongest person I know. So you're going to use that strength to keep it together, ok?"

"Ok," I said.

"And you're going to sit down and think of some way to protect yourself in case they come for you too, ok?"

"Ok." I hadn't even thought of that, but the moment he mentioned it, I knew he was right. They could come for me, too, now that the girls were out of the way. I got up and began walking from door to door to make sure they were all locked and bolted.

"Be sure to put on your bracelet, the one the girls and I got you for Christmas."

"Why should I –"

"And on my end," Adrian said, interrupting me, "I am going to hold it together somefuckinghow, and I'm going to call every badass dhampir I know who cares about you, and _that_, by the way, is a lot of badass dhampirs."

"Eddie," I said, suddenly filled with affection for my old friend. He'd been almost like a brother to me by the time I'd left Palm Springs, and I missed him.

"Castile, for sure, and both Belikovs, and Mr. Sonya..."

"You mean Mikhail?"

"Yep. Each of these guys could kill a room full of Strigoi. I think they can handle whoever took Amy and Violet."

Something in me unclenched at the thought of Rose, Dimitri, Eddie, and Mikhail coming to the rescue. It was hard to think of anyone I would trust more to save my daughters. And – not that it mattered so much – it would be nice to see them, too. And Amy would just love Rose, I was sure of it. But then it hit me: when Rose met Amy, Rose would _know_. They would _all_ know. And things would change forever. There was nothing I could do about that, though.

"Ok," I said. "I guess... I guess that I can trust them with our secret."

"It probably won't come as a complete surprise to them," Adrian said, gently. "I think they knew how we felt about each other."

"I guess but... God, Adrian, I can't think about this right now."

"Yeah, me either," Adrian said. "I know. It's going to be weird. But there are more important things than our secret at this point."

"I know," I said.

"So I'm going to go make some calls, and we'll talk again soon. I can hop a flight and be there by 5:30 or 6 at the latest, and I'll bring everyone I can get to go with me. I wish it could be sooner but..."

"That's still pretty soon. Thank you."

"I love you, sweetheart," Adrian said.

"I love you too," I said, and we said goodbye and hung up.

I put the phone in my pocket, then found my bracelet in my purse and slipped it on my wrist. I had no idea why Adrian thought the bracelet would protect me in any way, but I had to agree with him that I might be in some danger. But what kind of danger? And where on earth were my girls?

By then I'd finished checking all the doors, and I decided that since the playroom was a half-flight up, it would be the safest room to wait in. I sat down on my mom's old couch to think. I needed answers, and there was only one way I could think of to get some.

I got my normal cell phone and found my dad's number in my directory. If the alchemists had moved against me, no doubt my father would know about it, and knowing him, he'd be the first to brag about what he'd done. I swallowed hard, then hit the button to place the call.

"Hello?" my father said.

"Hi, Dad. It's Sydney."

"Sydney?" he said. "Hi! How are you?" He sounded actually happy to hear from me, which surprised me. I had been practically holding my breath, waiting for him to say something menacing about my daughters, or about Adrian and me. And instead, I'd gotten... a normal sounding father. It was kind of like those times that you think there's one more stair to go, and you step down hard into empty space. I was jarred and confused.

"Oh, I'm ok," I said. "How are you?"

"I'm fine, but what's going on?" he asked, an edge of tension in his voice. "Are you all ok? Are Amy and Violet ok? Do you need something?"

"Oh, we're all fine. The girls are, um, playing at a friend's house," I said, and crossed my fingers. "I guess I was just calling to say hi."

I could hear the relief in his voice when he said, "Good. You call so rarely, I thought maybe something was wrong."

"Sorry about that," I said, feeling awkward. "We're just so busy."

"Of course," my dad said. "Kids can be a handful. Especially intelligent, interesting kids like yours." He laughed. "Is Amy still doing her gymnastics? I remember how much she wanted to take the class, but she changes her mind faster than I can keep track."

"Yeah," I said. "She still likes it. I guess it's a good outlet for her... for her..." I trailed off, fighting tears. The combination of confusion and fear was enough to make it difficult to speak.

"Her energy," Dad finished. "She's a pip, that one." He laughed again. "You know, you and the girls should come to visit soon," he said. "I have Violet's birthday present right here. I was hoping you'd visit so I could give it to her in person. Maybe we can have a little party, invite Carly and Zoe... You know, Zoe's back from Prague, and I'm sure she'd love to see you too."

"That sounds nice," I said. "But um, the girls have school..."

"Some other time, then," he said, sounding a little disappointed. "You're welcome to visit whenever you want. Maybe around Easter time – they get some time off then, right?"

"Right," I said. "Um. Maybe. We'll see."

"In the meantime, I guess I should just bring Violet's present to the post office, then. Well, it'll get me out of the house, anyway."

"I'm sure she'll love to get a present from her grandfather," I said, starting to feel even worse. I _had_ to get off the phone, so I resorted to a little white lie. "Oh, Dad, I'm sorry, but my other line is ringing – I better get it."

"Sure, Sydney, sure," my father said. "But it was nice to hear your voice."

"Thanks, Dad. You too."

We said goodbye, and when I had hung up, I put my phone down on the couch next to me, feeling oddly shaken by the conversation. If there was a huge alchemist plot in motion, then either my father knew nothing about it, or he was a contender for an Oscar. He hadn't seemed his usual abrasive self at all – and when I thought about it, I realized that I couldn't quite remember the last time that he _had_. Maybe he was softening a little in his old age. But now wasn't the time to think about that. The main thing I cared about was the whereabouts of my daughters, and the phone call to my father had pretty much crossed him off the suspect list.

I was musing about what to do next when my phone – my regular phone – rang. I picked it up quickly and my heart skipped a beat when I saw that the call was coming from a blocked number.

"Hello?" I said, trying to keep my voice steady.

"Missing something?" an unfamiliar male voice asked.

Every muscle in my body clenched instantly. "Yes," I said. "Where are they?"

"Safe."

"What do you want?"

"Two million," the voice said.

"Dollars?" I said.

"No, pesos," said the man, then he laughed. "Yes, dollars. Are your kids worth a million bucks each to you?"

I wanted to reply that they were worth so much more than that, but it didn't seem like a good idea. "Yes," I said. "What do you want me to do, exactly?"

There was muffled conversation in the background, and then the man said, "We'll call you with the specifics in a few hours. Until then, I suggest you get your money together."

"I don't mean to sound uncooperative," I said. "But honestly, I will need more than a few hours to get together two million dollars. Please understand that."

"Fine," the voice said. "You'll have 24 hours. We'll call back in a few hours with further instructions."

"Ok," I said. "Please don't hurt them."

"We don't want to have to, lady," the man said, then hung up.

I put the phone down and stared into space for a few minutes, stunned.

Money? These guys only wanted money? Was that a cover for what was really going on, or was this really just a random kidnapping?

I briefly considered calling Rick, since he was the one who made the majority of the money in our household. But I soon discarded the idea. For one thing, I wasn't sure if Rick had two million dollars in the bank. For another, I didn't want to drag him into this, in case it really was the alchemists. Besides, I didn't want him to come home right now. I didn't want him around, blaming me for this, ranting about how it never would have happened if I hadn't insisted on working outside the home. And most of all, I didn't want to have to look at his face.

I stood up and began pacing, then got my other phone out of my pocket. My hands were shaking so badly that it took three or four tries before I could even hit the right buttons to dial Adrian's number.

"Any news, sweetheart?" Adrian asked as he answered.

"Someone called with a ransom demand," I said, in a tight, clipped voice.

"What?" Adrian was incredulous.

"They want two million dollars," I said. "I don't know if that's the whole story, but that's what they said."

"I can get two million dollars," Adrian said. "It's not chump change, but I don't give a shit about money if it gets the girls back."

"Thanks for offering," I said, automatically.

"Hey, obviously, I'm going to help you," Adrian said. "They're my kids too. Well, Amy is, anyway. And Violet is my favorite seven year old."

"But what if..." I said, and choked a little on the words. I swallowed heavily and tried again. "What if they don't actually give them back? What if we give them the money and they still k-k-k-"

"That won't happen," Adrian said, firmly. "I won't let it. _You_ won't let it. And I've got a few people lined up to come down to help. All I had to say was 'Sydney Sage needs help' and they were all on board. It's going to be ok."

"Thank you," I said. "Adrian, thank you..." I tried to say more, but my words failed me.

"We're getting on the plane in less than half an hour. I promise you that everything will be ok. And I love you with all my heart."

"I love you too," I said.

We said goodbye and hung up. I pictured him taking long strides across the floor, grabbing his long gray coat, maybe picking up his wallet and keys, and leaving, his expression set on what he wanted to accomplish.

I gave myself about thirty seconds to just take long, slow, deep breaths. Then I made a mental checklist of things to do, got out my alchemist kit from under the bathroom sink, and set to work.


	12. Let's Rock

_Hey guys. I've been pretty sick for a while – had to go on antibiotics and everything – and this section of the story is tough to write. Fluff is easy, but managing to balance tension and fear with realism, and make it a genuine three-person conversation, wow, that's hard for me. You will not believe how many drafts of this I wrote until I was finally satisfied enough with the flow and tone to put this up. Hope you enjoy. _

**Chapter 12: Let's Rock  
**

There were a few things I had to take care of, and I spent a productive few hours. I'd only been home for about 15 minutes when my doorbell rang. I ran to the door, not sure who I most wanted to see, and was met with Adrian – and Rose Hathaway. Well, Rose Belikov, I amended, internally. We all said hello, and Adrian immediately reached out to hug me. His physical presence almost overwhelmed me for a moment, so strangely different in reality than it had been in any of our dreams.

When we released each other, I turned to Rose. "Thank you so much for coming," I said, and held out my arms for a hug.

"No problem," she said, though there was something brittle about her smile.

We gave each other an awkward hug, and then I gestured for them to come inside. I showed them into the kitchen, and as we walked, Adrian explained that Eddie, Mikhail, and Dimitri had also come along, but were waiting at a McDonalds in a neighboring town in case the house was being watched.

"Hopefully, if anyone sees us, Adrian and I will just look like friends of yours, stopping by to cheer you up," Rose said, as I sat down at the kitchen table. "But all five of us coming at once – that would have been super suspicious."

"Especially with Belikov lumbering around like a terrifying Siberian giant," Adrian said, and sat down next to me at the table, in the chair that Amy usually sat in.

Rose ignored the jibe, and declined to sit down. Instead, she stood a few feet away, tapping her foot impatiently. She reminded me of a car whose engine had been revved up, but whose emergency break was still on. "So, Adrian filled me in on the basics," she said. "But I'd like to hear it from you, Sydney. What exactly happened this afternoon?"

I told her the story, starting with the school bus, and ending with the ransom call. Rose listened intently, tapping her foot a little and nodding from time to time. It seemed clear that I was only repeating what Adrian had told her, and when I was done, she sighed.

"And you haven't heard from the kidnappers again?" she asked.

"No," I said. "But –"

"That's what I thought," she said.

"What do you mean by that?" I asked.

"Sydney," she said, sitting down next to me in the spot that Violet usually chose. The difference between Rose's barely contained energy and Violet's quiet determination was momentarily thrown into sharp relief for me. "I hate to be the one to tell you this," she said. "But I don't think that it was just a random set of kidnappers."

"Rose," Adrian said. It was a warning.

"I don't think it was random, either," I said. "But –"

"In fact, I'm pretty certain that it was your husband," Rose said, in a tone that suggested she thought she was delivering terrible news.

"It wasn't my husband," I said, unruffled. "At least, he's not directly responsible..."

"Sydney, wake up," Rose said, in what she probably thought was a gentle tone. "Adrian told me everything. Your husband is a complete asshole. He's been cheating on you, and is obsessed with having – having as in possessing – children. He really seems like the most obvious candidate."

"I can kind of see why you'd think that," I said. "And God knows I'm don't have any illusions about what kind of person he is. But it doesn't seem right to me, somehow. I mean, if Rick took them, then why would there have been a ransom demand?"

"To throw you off," Adrian said, gently. "To make you think it wasn't him."

"It doesn't make sense, though," I said. "The ransom demand would have made any normal woman call her husband and ask him to come home. If I had done that, it would have cut down on the time he had to run off with the girls. Besides, if he wanted to run off with them, it'd be so much easier to do it some other way – plan a little vacation with just the three of them and never come back, for example."

"I guess that makes sense," Rose said, slowly. I got the feeling that she didn't like me shooting down her pet theory. Adrian, meanwhile, was nodding, clearly convinced by what I was saying.

"Further," I went on, "if Rick wanted to leave me, he'd just take the girls away through the court system."

"Maybe he didn't want to take any chances," Rose said. "Kidnapping them might have seemed more like a safe bet."

"But he wouldn't see a court case as a chancy thing," I said. "He's too arrogant. He'd never even consider the possibility of losing in court."

"Too arrogant, and too stupid," Adrian said. "It's going to be fun to take him down – once we get the girls back, of course."

"So," Rose said. She seemed a little deflated. "Now what are we going to do?" She seemed to be asking the question more of herself than of Adrian or me, and was clearly surprised when I answered her.

"I have two ideas," I said.

Rose raised an eyebrow, and Adrian laughed. "That's my girl," he said. "Tell us your ideas."

"Well, first," I said, "I got some information about the kidnapper."

"_What_?" Rose exploded. "Why didn't you mention that?"

"How did you manage that?" Adrian asked, at almost the same time.

"I haven't just been sitting here," I said. "I went to see all of Amy little friends and asked them each if they saw Amy after school –"

"Why just _Amy's_ friends?" Rose asked, as if she sensed some sort of conspiracy afoot.

"Because she's older, so her friends are older, and are more observant," I said.

"Oh," Rose said, as Adrian laughed a little. "Ok. Sorry. Dumb question. Go on..."

"Anyway, one of her friends saw the girls getting into a car with a stranger. So I gave her an alchemist compound to help her remember the exact details of what she saw."

"What'd you do, put it into a cookie?" Rose asked.

"It was a brownie," I said.

"You amaze me," Adrian said, smiling and shaking his head. "So, did she remember anything good?"

"She gave me a description of the driver. He was about 5'9, with very light blond hair, and was about 20 to 22. That could be tons of people, unfortunately. The bigger lead is the car. It's a gray sedan with a Virginia plate ending in 5ZD."

"That's fantastic," Rose said. "You barely need us."

"I still need you," I said. "I don't know any way to run the plates, now that I'm not in the alchemists anymore."

"Can we do anything with the plate info?" Adrian asked Rose. "Maybe we should call Mikhail and see what he can dig up for us. He's the computer guy, right?"

"I guess so..." Rose said. "I'm not sure if he can help with this, though."

"I'm sort of counting more on my other idea," I said. I held up my cell phone, my regular one, which was hooked up to a small device that I knew neither Adrian nor Rose had ever seen before. "This is alchemist technology," I said. "The next time the phone rings, this device will fix on the location of the person who placed the call – and hold on to that location until I reset the device."

"Wait," Rose said. "The _person_? Not the phone?"

"The person," I said.

"Wow," Rose said, shaking her head. "You alchemists scare me."

"I'm not an alchemist any more," I said, automatically. "Anyway, assuming that the kidnappers do call again – which they're supposed to do any minute now – we'll be able to get a firm lock on their location, and go rescue my daughters."

"And you're sure they'll call?" Rose asked.

"I'm hoping they will," I said, and I heard, and hated, the note of fear and doubt in my voice. Adrian reached over for my hand, and I gave it to him gratefully.

"Well," Rose said. "Maybe they will." Her tone indicated that she found the mere idea virtually impossible. "But we really should come up with a plan in case they don't call."

I felt annoyance begin to rise in me, but I didn't want it to show. Rose was doing me a huge favor, and the last thing I wanted to do was alienate her. Thankfully, Adrian stepped in at that moment. "Why don't we give it 45 minutes or so for them to call?" Adrian suggested. "Meanwhile," he added, looking at Rose, "you can make a few calls and see if anyone can do anything with that license plate information."

"Ok," Rose said, standing up again. "I'll try Mikhail."

"And um, I can make us all some coffee or something," I said, getting to my feet. "Or a snack maybe, if you guys are hungry."

"Coffee would be fine - _great_, actually," Rose said. "Thanks." And she walked out into the front hall, pulling her cell phone from her pocket as she went.

"Do you want coffee, too?" I asked Adrian, as I went over to the coffee maker.

"Yes, please, sweetheart," he said. "But I can make it for us if you want."

"I'm fine," I said, and opened a pouch of coffee grounds. I tried to pour the coffee into the top of the coffee maker but managed instead to pour it all over the counter.

"That little GPS device is amazing," Adrian said, in a pleasant tone. "Did you make it yourself, or did you have it lying around?"

"I put it together from a few spare parts I had," I said, cleaning up the spill and transferring the grounds to the machine. "It only took a few minutes. It took longer to bake the brownies, actually."

"Are there any brownies left?" Adrian asked.

"Sure," I said, filling a small terracotta pitcher with water for the coffee. "You can have one if you don't mind developing a really, really good memory for about fifteen minutes after you eat it."

"That sounds kind of fun," Adrian said.

"You would also develop an uncontrollable urge to tell everyone the truth about everything you know," I said.

"I do that anyway, sweetheart," Adrian said, and I tried to smile as I moved away from the sink to bring the water over to the coffee maker.

"The compound can be useful if you lose something," I said. "Like your keys. Or your... your..." Then my hand seemed to lose strength, and I dropped the pitcher, which smashed into pieces. The water spilled all over the kitchen floor as pieces of terracotta scattered in every direction. I stood completely still for a moment, and then I snapped back to reality, grabbed some paper towels, and began dabbing at the water.

But by then Adrian was at my side. He pulled me to my feet, then took the towels from my hands and dropped them on the floor, ignoring my protests that I had to clean up the water. He folded me up in his arms and after a moment, I put my head on his shoulder. "It's ok," he murmured. "It's going to be ok."

"I broke the pitcher," I said, my voice muffled against his chest.

"It doesn't matter," Adrian said, in that same soothing tone.

"I _liked_ that pitcher," I said. I felt disconnected, like the words I was saying were coming from someone else.

"I'll buy you a new one," Adrian said, and squeezed me gently.

"I liked _that_ one," I insisted, and leaned away from him so we could see each other's faces.

"Then I'll glue it back together for you," Adrian said, and kissed me once, softly, on the lips.

"It'll never hold water again," I said.

"Then we'll use it for candy," Adrian said.

I nodded, then burst into tears. Adrian just pulled me tighter, then steered me back over to the table. He sat down, and I sat in his lap, hoping vaguely that the chair could hold our combined weight. "What if..." I whispered. "What if the kidnappers don't call?"

"Then we'll track them down via the DMV, or something," Adrian said. "Or I'll find the girls in dreams. It's a done deal, sweetheart. Amy and Violet are as good as home."

"What if they're hurt?" I whispered.

"Then I'll heal them."

"What if they're..." But I couldn't say it.

"The kidnappers won't do that," Adrian said. "That's not what they want to do. Either they want to 'reprogram' the girls, or get ransom money for them, or just keep them for some reason. So you see? It's only logical. The girls have to be ok."

I forced myself to nod.

"Besides," Adrian said. "I didn't wait for ten years to meet them just to lose them before I really had to a chance to... to... know them, to hang out with them. So. I'm not letting them go. These kidnappers really pissed off the wrong guy."

That made me smile, despite the tears that still threatened at the corners of my eyes. Adrian kissed me one more time, and then I stood up again, still a little worried about breaking the chair. "Thanks," I said. "I better clean up that mess, though."

"I'll do it," Adrian said, standing up and gesturing for me to sit back down. "I have broken a few things in my life and am pretty good at picking up little bits. And making coffee is one of the few domestic tasks I'm any good at, so give me this chance to show off a little, ok?"

"Ok," I said. I watched as Adrian pulled the broom down off from a hook on the wall and began sweeping up bits of the pitcher. He looked good doing anything he did, I realized. Idly, I wondered how many Youtube hits we'd get for a video of Adrian cleaning the kitchen floor. But a second later, the reality of my current situation came back to me, surprising me anew with how awful it was. I swallowed hard and forced myself not to begin crying again. I had already lost control a few times, and doing so again wouldn't exactly help my daughters. I tried to think of something, anything, else to talk about. "So," I said. "How did Rose react to the news about Amy?"

"You mean, how did she react to the fact that you and I once did the deed?"

I sighed. "I guess so," I said. "She doesn't seem thrilled."

"She's not _thrilled_," Adrian said. "Things have changed a lot in our world, but not enough to make a relationship like ours... _normal_."

I got up to get the dustpan, then held it in place as Adrian swept in the pile of terracotta bits. The pitcher was damaged beyond repair, and I realized I didn't really care about it at all. "What _has_ changed?" I asked, genuinely curious, and glad to hear about something unrelated to my current situation.

Adrian paused to consider. "Hmm," he said. "Mainly, it's that Lissa's done a lot to help make dhampirs more involved in things. We – I mean, Moroi – used to treat them kind of like second-class citizens or something, and a lot of that is evolving, and I say about time. But people's feelings about humans haven't exactly changed, which is really a shame. I know that we probably can't be generally known about in the world, but there's no reason for us to build such a huge wall between ourselves and humans." He gave me a rueful smile, and then, having finished cleaning up the floor, set himself to the task of making the coffee.

"What about everyone else?" I asked. "How did they react?" I dumped the dustpan of terracotta pieces into the garbage. I found that, at that moment, I didn't really care anymore about gluing together the pitcher again.

"Eddie took it best, really," Adrian said. "For one thing, he wasn't exactly surprised. For another, during his time in Palm Springs, he spent so much time with humans, and had friendships with humans that meant a lot to him. So, really, Eddie didn't seem to care much about you and me. He was more fascinated with the idea that I had a daughter at all. He seemed to think it would be funny watching me being a parent to some other living creature." He gave a self-deprecating chuckle, and I smiled a tiny bit, too.

"What about Dimitri?" I asked. Even after all this time, Dimitri still intimidated me a little, even though I knew him to be honorable and kind.

"Belikov doesn't tend to judge _anything_ that anyone does," Adrian said. "I think it's because he still feels guilty about what he did when he was a Strigoi. And weirdly enough, I think he might still feel bad that he hooked up with Rose when she and I were still dating, though in retrospect I should have known I was just keeping the seat warm for him." He shrugged. "Water under the bridge, really. And if you're wondering about Mikhail, it's kind of similar. He's married to a Moroi-slash-ex-Strigoi, so he has some experience with so-called forbidden romances..."

"So does Rose!" I said, as quietly as I could, despite my exasperation. I didn't want her to hear me, and she was only down the hall.

"I know," Adrian said, also quietly. "But I get the feeling that there's more on her mind than just the whole races-mixing thing. I'm not sure exactly what it is."

I sighed. "I shouldn't really care how she feels," I said. "I should just be glad that she's here and willing to help. It's incredibly generous of all of you."

Adrian seemed about to answer, but instead he closed his mouth, looking over to the hallway door, and I realized he must have heard Rose coming back down the hall. Moments later she stomped back into the room and immediately launched into a rant.

"Why we don't have our own connections to the DMV, I will never understand," she said, sitting down next to me at the table. "I mean, we have frickin' magic on our side. It shouldn't be that hard to hook something up. But nooooo. So, there's no way to get any info on those partials, Sydney." She sighed. "Sorry. I don't mean to lose my cool. It's just that sometimes, the Guardians are so old-school that it actually hinders, like, our actual _work_."

"It's ok," I said. "Thank you for trying."

"No problem," she said. "Oh, the coffee smells good. How on earth did you get Adrian to make it?"

Adrian stuck out his tongue at her. "I'm being a gentleman," he said. "Besides, I'm good at making coffee, little Belikova – which is more than I can say for you."

She stuck out her tongue at him in response, then turned to me. "Hey," she said, brightening a little. "I was thinking, do you have any pictures of your daughters? And maybe one of your husband? It might be useful."

I nodded and went into the living room quickly to grab a few framed photographs, which I brought back to the kitchen. Adrian came over to see the pictures, too, and Rose let out a startled exclamation when she saw the picture of Amy. She held it up in front of her so she could easily compare the face in the picture to the face of the Moroi by our side.

"I know," Adrian said. "No mistaking who her daddy is." He gave me a wan smile, then went back over to the coffee maker. Over his shoulder, he said, "I always knew I was a good-looking guy, but I didn't know that I could make a good-looking girl."

It took me a minute to catch the double meaning of his statement, and then I rolled my eyes. I know it probably seems strange that Adrian and I were joking around like this, but there's only so long that your mind can handle the extremes of terror and misery. Sooner or later, you have to laugh. And I needed Adrian's lightness if I was going to make it through the next day or so without losing my mind.

"Ewwww," Rose said, as the meaning of Adrian's words settled in her mind. "I don't want to think about that. But," she added hurriedly, "she's a beautiful little girl. Both of them are. And Violet looks just like you! How old is she again? I know Amy is almost ten."

"Violet just turned seven," I said, and my voice dipped dangerously on the last word. She had seemed so grown up to me at her birthday, so much bigger than the baby she'd once been, but now in my mind she seemed incredibly small and helpless, and far too young to be going through what she was probably going through right now. "She looks a little younger, but she acts older most of the time."

"Well, I'm looking forward to meeting her, and Amy too," Rose said, and when I didn't answer, she flicked my shoulder with her hand so that I'd look up. "Hey," she said. "We'll find them, Sydney. I'm thinking our next step will be to break into the local DMV to run the plates ourselves. Mikhail is pretty good with computers, after all the time he worked at Guardian headquarters, trying to modernize their systems."

"That sounds like a doable plan," I said. "There's a DMV about twenty minutes away."

"Great," Rose said. "So if we haven't gotten that call by 6:30, I'll have the guys meet us at the DMV at 7. It'll be completely dark by then, so we should be able to get in and out without too much problem. And," she added, "we can still be hoping for the call as we do all that. Who knows, maybe it'll still come in."

"Thanks," I said. "Really. Thanks. I still can't believe all of you came to help me."

"Well, of course we came," Rose said, just as Adrian brought over a tray with mugs, milk, sugar, and the pot of coffee. "You've done a lot for us. We're your friends." She gave me another one of those weird smiles. "I mean, kind of. As much as dhampirs can be friends with an alchemist."

"I'm not an alchemist any more," I said, taking one of the mugs.

Adrian poured some coffee for me, saying, "I explained about all of that on the plane."

"Yeah, I was pretty surprised when he told me," Rose said. "It's weird to see you without your tattoo."

Self-conciously, I stroked my cheek, feeling the slight groove that marked the former location of my protective golden lily. "You can still see it if you look really, really closely," I said.

Rose peered at me. "Yeah, I guess so," she said, then shrugged. "But I have to say, I'm pretty glad you're not with the alchemists anymore. They can be pretty scary. And I wouldn't put it past them to try to take your kids, even if they're not my primary suspects. Oh, thanks," she added, as Adrian filled her mug, and he nodded.

"They have the resources to do it," I said. "And a certain philosophical rationale to do it."

"That's true enough," Adrian said. "But the thing I don't get is, why would they bother _you_? You're not with the organization any more. If you want to hang out with evil creatures like me and Rose, it should be your business, not theirs."

I shook my head, stirring my coffee. "Not necessarily. My dad, or anyone else in my immediate family, can order an action like this. They used to tell us that if we suspected anyone in our family of 'shifting loyalties,' as they called it, we should immediately bring it to the attention of an elder, even if the family member isn't an active alchemist."

"So your dad or either of your sisters could have ordered some sort of strike against you and your kids?" Adrian asked, and I nodded. "Do you think they would have?" he asked.

"I don't know," I said. "I called my dad to see how he'd react to my call, and all he did was ask if I was ok and when was I going to come to visit." I took a sip of the coffee, and found that Adrian hadn't been lying when he said he knew how to brew it. It was a useful skill to have in a boyfriend, I reflected. Not as useful as the ability to call on a team of dhampir guardians to rescue one's kidnapped children, but more universally applicable, for sure.

"Could your dad have been just acting?" Rose asked.

"I don't think so," I said. "If he'd ordered my reeducation, then he would have been proud of it."

"Okayyy..." Rose said. "That leaves... who? Your sisters? Do you think they'd do this?"

"Carly, no," I said, with a bit of a sigh. "She and I have gotten closer over the years. We don't talk often, but she knows how awful my marriage is and is sympathetic. Zoe, on the other hand, is pretty gung-ho for alchemy. But she's been out of the country for two years and only just got back. I don't think that I'd be on her immediate radar."

"Then – and I don't mean to sound rude – but why do you think it was the alchemists?" Rose asked. "Like, who would have actually issued the order to kidnap your children?"

I was about to reply when my phone rang, startling all of us. I picked it up and hit the button to begin the call, and the small device attached to one side immediately lit up.

"Hello?" I said, cautiously.

"It's me again," said the male voice, the same one I'd heard a few hours ago.

"Yes," I said. "I'm listening."

The man began giving me the specific instructions about how to hand over the money. I was supposed to get onto the highway, northbound, and at the second underpass after a particular exit, I was supposed to pull over. There, I would leave the money, and drive to the next overpass, where my daughters would be waiting. It seemed like a really stupid way to do it, but I didn't want to argue, and besides, if all went according to plan, we'd get the girls back another way.

"Let me talk to my daughters," I said. "I want to know that they're alive before I give you two million dollars for them."

He sighed. "Fine," he said. There was some muffled conversation in the background, and the sound of footsteps. After a few minutes, the man's voice said, "Talk."

Then a small, familiar voice said, "Hello?"

"Violet," I said, careful to keep my voice as level as possible. "Honey, it's Mommy. Are you ok?"

"Kind of," she said. "I'm scared. But I'm ok. Amy's ok, too, I guess. I don't know where we are but it's a big –" But she was cut off as the man whisked the phone away from her.

"Ok," said the man's voice. "Now you know."

"I didn't get to talk to Amy," I said.

"Too bad," the man said. "She's been giving us some mouth so she's sleeping at the moment." He laughed, and my hand balled up into a fist.

"Don't hurt her," I said, not sure if that was a plea or an order. "She's just a little girl. They both are."

"Hey, I already told you, we don't want to hurt them," the man said. "Just pay up and this will all be over and you can go on with your life. Now, you have your instructions. You better come through." And he hung up.

"He wants you to drop the money under an overpass?" Rose said, rolling her eyes, as soon as the call had disconnected. She had clearly heard both sides of the conversation, a phenomenon I was used to by now because of Amy. "What a dick," Rose said. "Anyway. Did the GPS thing work?"

"Yes, thankfully," I said, holding the device up so that they could see the display, lit up now with a series of numbers indicating the current latitude and longitude of the person who had made the call.

"So we can go get him?" Rose said, her face shining with a look I'd seen a few times before on her: battle lust.

"As soon as I... do this," I said, plugging the GPS device into my tablet computer. A few moments later, the screen lit up with a map marked with a small red star. It showed a spot in a town in South Carolina, a few hours drive away from us.

"Let's go," Adrian said as he rose to his feet. He sounded determined.

I stood up too, glad that I had thought to charge the tablet fully, since we'd be needing to use it a lot before this night was through. "Yes, let's," I said, and as we all walked out to the front hall, I grabbed a small duffel bag that I had packed earlier. It held some clothes for the girls, as well as each of their favorite stuffed animals and some soft blankets.

We went outside and climbed into their rented SUV. Rose got in the driver's seat, explaining that she was the official driver on the rental agreement, and I got in the front seat with her, since I was the navigator. Adrian got in the back, clearly with the intention of leaning as far forward into our space as was possible.

"Let's rock," said Rose, as she backed out of the driveway, and though the phrase was silly and trite, I couldn't help but smile.

"Yes," I said. "Let's rock."


	13. The Roadhouse

**Chapter 13: The Roadhouse**

We'd been driving along dark country backroads for almost an hour, more or less in silence, when the GPS started giving me strange readings, and I realized that our quarry must be on the move. Adrian, who had dubbed himself the Cell Phone Master, called the other car to let Dimitri know to watch out for some sudden changes in direction.

The other car was also an SUV, and riding in it were Dimitri, Eddie, Mikhail, and – I was surprised to learn – Sonya. Neither Rose nor Adrian had mentioned her when they'd gotten to my house before, maybe because they didn't think of her as a fighter, but I knew better than to underestimate the powerful, and slightly spooky, spirit user. We'd been driving in tandem the whole time, and Rose and Dimitri had mostly communicated via hand gestures that I hadn't understood in the slightest.

"So," Rose asked, as the blip on my tablet computer continued on its wobbly path southwest. "Just how close can that GPS of yours get? Ten feet, a hundred feet..."

"It can pinpoint someone to the nearest three meters," I said. "So it's certainly close enough for our purposes."

Rose let out an appreciative sigh. "It's completely amazing," she said. "You know, when all this is over, if you have an extra one of those things to give away, I'd be pretty grateful to get one."

I had to bite my lip to keep from spitting out a peevish _No_! It was instinctive, of course, to protect alchemist technology from outsiders, even now, when I was no longer with the organization. But Rose was taking time out of her own life to go looking for my daughters for me. I could at least give her the GPS device – couldn't I? I forced myself to maintain a neutral expression, glad that I had gotten better at this kind of thing over the years. "Maybe," I said. "When all this is over, ask me again."

"And, maybe in return," Rose said, "I could be Amy's mentor."

This time I couldn't keep the annoyed shock out of my voice. "What?"

"I just meant, her mentor through the world of being a dhampir," Rose said. "She must feel so out of place in a world of humans. Poor kid... She probably has no idea why she hears, smells, and sees things that no one else can."

"She's fine," I said, in the calmest tone I could muster. "What kind of mother do you think I am? Do you think I never told her that she was special?" Adrian reached up to put a hand on my arm in a show of support, but he didn't speak. I think he knew that this was a battle I had to fight for myself, and I appreciated his confidence in me.

"I'm sure you –" Rose started to say, but I cut her off.

"Before Amy started kindergarten, I sat down with her to explain that she was special. We watched _The Incredibles_ together, and I told her that she was a secret superhero too, just like the little boy and girl from the family in the movie. I told her that she had to keep it a secret, because no one would understand, but that I always would believe her if she sensed something that I couldn't. I told her" – and my voice started to get choked up – "that I would always be on her side and that I would always believe her, even if no one else did."

"So you told her what she was?" Rose asked, after a brief pause.

"Drop it, Rose," Adrian said, in a low tone.

"She may never have heard the word dhampir," I said. "But she knows exactly what she is. She knows she is very special and very, very, very loved. Because _that's_ what she is." And then I had to stop talking, for fear that I would lose control completely.

Adrian took my hand. "And Amy's grown up to be an awesome kid," he said. "So you've obviously been doing a great job."

There was silence in the car for a long moment. Then Rose said, "Well, I'm looking forward to meeting her then. Both of them. And I'm sorry if I suggested anything... I don't know, anything I shouldn't have."

"It's ok," I said automatically, though at the moment, it really wasn't.

"Really," Rose said, and I heard the strain in her voice. "I guess I had the situation all wrong. And when I'm wrong I say that I'm wrong, so –"

But just then, the GPS unit let out a piercing noise to let us know that we were getting really close to our target. And at almost the same moment, we came around a corner and saw a roadside bar and grill just off the main road. The bright red neon sign read "Fat Bobby's."

"I guess this is the place," I said, as excitement and apprehension bubbled up inside of me. "He must be in there."

"In a bar?" Rose said. "What the hell?"

Adrian muttered something that sounded a lot like, "I could use a drink anyway."

We pulled into the gravelly parking area, and Dimitri's car followed us, parking in a nearby spot. The whole parking area was lit up bright as day with several large floodlights. We all got out of the car to talk, and for me, it was my first opportunity to actually greet my old friends and acquaintances. Eddie surprised me with a bear hug, and Dimitri and Mikhail each offered polite handshakes. Sonya hugged me and gave me a kiss on the cheek. I thanked them all for coming, as quickly as I could, not wanting to waste time, and they all waved off my thanks.

Rose and Dimitri took a minute to confer, and while they were talking, Eddie caught my eye. "It's nice to see you," he said. "Wish it was under different circumstances."

"Me too," I said.

"We'll have to catch up when this is all over," he said, and I nodded. Then I noticed that the car we were standing in front of was a gray sedan with Virginia plates. I asked Eddie to move a little bit so I could check the license plate, and my heart skipped a beat when I saw that it was a match for the one Amy's friend had described.

"Rose," I called. She looked over, saw where I was pointing, and grinned.

"Awesome," she said. "We're _definitely_ in the right place. Ok, people, come together..." The dhampirs got together in a closer circle, with Adrian, Sonya and me on the outside. "Here's the plan," Rose said. "We're going to split up. Dimitri and Mikhail will be watching the exits, and the sedan, ready to follow the guy if he gets away. Meanwhile, Eddie and I will go inside and try to find him..."

"Without me?" I said. "No way. I'm the one with the GPS."

"But, Sydney," Rose said. "You said yourself that the GPS is only good to the nearest three meters. We know the guy's inside. All we have to do now is grab him..."

"Sydney," Dimitri said. "You can trust Rose. If the man you seek is in there, she'll find him for you."

"Yes, I'm sure she will," I said. "And I'm going in with her."

"That's my girl," Adrian said, grinning. He squeezed my hand.

"It'll be a waste of resources if I have to protect you _and_ look for the perp," Rose said.

"Perp," Adrian muttered next to me. "_Perp_." He snorted.

"I don't want to waste time arguing," I said. "I'm going in with you and that's that. I live in the area. I know how local people act. And if it really is Rick or his friends, I'll recognize them."

"They might recognize you," Dimitri said.

"We'll recognize each other," I said. "And then it'll be time to act."

"Sydney," Rose said, in a tone that suggested she was about to make one of her extremely logical arguments. "We're trying to help you. I swear."

Adrian spoke up. "Little Belikova," he said. "If it were _your_ kids who were missing, would you wait out here?"

Rose paused, then kicked at the gravel a little. "I hate you sometimes, Adrian," she said. "Especially when you make sense."

"You love me and you know it," Adrian said, and laughed. Then he took my hand and lifted it to his lips for kiss. I saw his eyes settle on my bracelet for a moment, and then he looked back up at my face. "Go on, Sydney. Go find the kids. Just stay safe." He squeezed my hand, then dropped it.

"Come on, Sydney," Eddie said, gesturing for me to come with him. "Let's go in." I smiled and took a few steps towards the door.

"Wait," Adrian said, jogging a little to catch up to us.

"What?" I said. "Do you –"

And he grabbed me and kissed me soundly, right there, in front of everyone. For a split second, I was embarrassed, shy to be seen kissing a Moroi in front of a group of dhampirs – but only for a second. After that, my brain left my head for a minute, and there was nothing but the feeling of his mouth on mine, his hands on my back and in my hair, and the heat of the kiss.

When he pulled away from me, I stared at him, wide eyed. He leaned close and whispered, "That's for luck."

"I guess I'll be pretty lucky then," I said, which was an incredibly lame reply, but really, it was amazing that I could speak at all after a kiss like that. I looked back over at Eddie, who was looking studiously at the ground. Then I glanced around and saw that everyone looked very uncomfortable, except for Sonya, who was smiling pleasantly. I smiled back at her, then said, "Come on, Eddie. And Rose too, if you're still coming." Then I began walking towards the door again, smoothing down my hair with my fingers.

A moment later, Eddie joined me, as did Rose, and the three of us stepped through the door at about the same time. There were two huge bouncers in the vestibule area, and we showed them our proof of age, then walked inside the main room.

It took me a moment to adjust to the initial assault to my senses, and I could only imagine how it felt for the dhampirs, with their sensitive ears and noses. It was a very large room, warm despite the February weather, and dimly lit with reddish lights. It smelled of sweat, fried food, and beer. Peanut shells crunched under my feet, and a jukebox somewhere was playing an old Rolling Stones song, loudly enough that I could feel some of the vibrations in my sternum.

There was a bar area to our right, and a lot of people in jeans and t-shirts were milling around, drinking beer and chatting. A seating area to our left seemed to function more of a restaurant, and I saw cheeseburgers, fries, and chicken fingers being eaten. No one was holding up a sign that said, "Hey! I'm the kidnapper!" In fact, everyone just looked like the typical roadhouse patron, here to drink beer, listen to jukebox music, and maybe make a connection with someone looking for a kiss – or a kick.

We made our way over to the bar area, and Rose gestured with her head to a young looking guy standing about halfway down the length of the bar. The guy was about 5'9, and was young, maybe 20 or 21, with pale blond hair and small features. In other words, he perfectly matched the description of the kidnapper that Amy's friend had provided. Rose sidled up to the bar, squeezing up next to the blond guy as if she were trying to get a drink. Eddie, meanwhile, was quickly scanning the room, looking for... I don't know, guardian things. Entrances and exits, windows, threats, whatever. Neither he nor Rose was paying much attention to me.

I went over to the far end of the bar, where there was some space to stand, and, in a brief silence between songs on the jukebox, I asked the bartender for a diet Coke. The bartender was in his early 40s, I thought, and pretty good looking for his age, if you liked muscular guys in shirts with the sleeves torn off. He raised an eyebrow at the request, but quickly got a glass and filled it from one of those little spray hoses that bartenders use. He worked quickly, the tattoos on his bare arms rippling as he moved. "Here you go, cutie-pie," he said, handing me a pint glass with a Pabst Blue Ribbon logo on it. "Haven't seen you here before," he said. "Or your friends, neither."

_Cutie-pie_? I thought, but smiled brightly. "Oh, we're just passing through," I said, speaking loudly to be heard over the music. "Just needed a break from the driving."

"Ohhhh," he said, knowingly. He also had to almost shout to be heard over the music. "You're the DD, then." He caught my blank expression and clarified. "The Designated Driver."

"You guessed it," I said, and smiled again. "So most people in here, you know them?"

"Oh, yeah," he said. "Nearly everyone, 'cept you three, and maybe two or three other folks."

"That's really cool," I said. "A real neighborhood place. I guess I'm asking because I saw a car outside with its lights on, and maybe you'll know whose car it is." I described the gray sedan, complete with the license plate number, and he nodded to show that he was listening.

"I know most these guys' cars," he said. "Had to keep keys overnight a few times, you know? But no one here got Virginia plates, that I know of."

"Too bad," I said.

"Don't want no one's battery to run down," the bartender said. "Even someone dumb enough to leave the lights on. I'll make an announcement at the end of the song." He gave me a small piece of paper and a tiny pencil to write the plate number down on, and as I wrote, I saw him fiddling with a small tablet computer stuck to the wall. I peered closer and saw it had a list of songs on it, and I realized it must control the jukebox. He took the paper from me when I was done, and I saw him slip it into the back pocket of his jeans.

"So how much do I owe you for the Coke?" I asked.

"Nothing," he said, smiling. "Good Samaritan rule, I guess."

"Thanks so much," I said, though honestly, I'd rather have paid than be in debt to someone. I gave him my brightest smile, hoping it didn't look too fake, and began to make my way back through the crowd to my friends. Rose was busy talking to the blond guy, but Eddie was just watching the room carefully, so I told him about the fake announcement I had asked the bartender to make.

"That was smart thinking, Syd," he said, shaking his head in pleased disbelief. "It's nice to have you back on the same team as me. Like old times."

"Team Melrose," I said, and he laughed. "Hey, what are Rose and that guy talking about?"

Eddie paused to listen. "He's asking her if she wants to get together tomorrow night. He says he'll be done with work at 7:30 or 8." Eddie wrinkled his brow in thought briefly, then said, "That's right after when the ransom is due, right?"

"It is," I said.

"What do you think?" Eddie asked. "Final nail in the coffin, or...?"

"I don't know," I said. To me, something about it seemed odd. What kind of guy would make a date for an hour after he'd picked up a ransom for a kidnapping? "Hey," I said. "I'm going to go ask the bartender something real fast." Eddie nodded and resumed his watchful stance.

I elbowed my way back through the rowdy crowd to the end of the bar again, and smiled at the tattooed bartender. "Hi again," I said, with that highbeam smile.

"Hi again, cutie," he said, and leaned forward. "Need another Coke?"

"Still on the first one," I said, and held it up to show that it was still half full. "But can I ask you something?"

"You can ask me anything you want."

"Do you know the guy my friend is talking to? I'm just wondering because... well, they seem to be hitting it off, and..."

"Worried about your friend?" he asked, and I nodded. "Yeah, I know him," he said. "That's Morgan. He's my buddy's little brother. Good kid really, though he's got _the_ worst luck with the ladies." We both looked over to see Rose and the blond guy – who apparently was named Morgan – still talking away. But now Rose looked a little more sly than she had before. It was another one of her looks that I recognized. She thought she had this guy cornered.

"My friend has bad luck, too," I said. "If there's one guy in a bar who is like, a murderer or a kidnapper or something, my friend would go right to him."

The bartender laughed. "Then they're a match made in heaven," he said. "But don't worry. Morgan is a real nice kid. Wouldn't hurt a fly. He works double shifts on Saturday – he's an orderly at the hospital over in Roxboro – so he probably won't be staying out too much later."

_We are so on the wrong track, _I thought. Out loud, I said, "Wow, you really _do_ know everyone in here!"

"I should," he said, and laughed. "It's my place! I never even left the state, 'cept once to see the Statue of Liberty when I was a kid. This bar, it's like my home."

"I'm just curious," I said. "Who else are the strangers in here, besides me and my two friends?"

"Hmm," the bartender said, and looked around. "Well, there's those two over there." He gestured to a couple in their late 30s, who were leaning so close together over their table that I thought they might start kissing any moment. "And there's that old guy, over there." He pointed out a man who was 70 years old if he was a day. "And that young fellow, on the side." And he gestured to a thin guy in his mid 20s eating a huge plate of chicken fingers, on the edge of the seating area.

"So few," I said, my eyes wide with feigned amazement.

"What do you want to bet those two are having an affair?" the bartender asked, nodding towards the couple, and I laughed.

"Seems like a safe bet," I said. "Well, I better get back to my friends. Thanks for your help."

"Anytime, cutie pie," the bartender said, and winked.

I began jostling through people to go back to Eddie and Rose. But just then, the song on the jukebox ended, and the bartender cleared his throat, ready to make his announcement. When the silence fell, however, Rose's words could be clearly heard in the entire bar, and what she was saying was far too distracting for the bartender to make his announcement.

"... they are! I know you know so just tell me!"

"I... I... I'm sorry, I don't know what you mean," Morgan sputtered. "I would help you if I could, I swear. You're real pretty... I swear, I don't mean no harm to any little kids."

"Cut the bull," Rose said. "Amy and Violet. Where are they?"

A tiny sliver of movement in the seating area caught my eye. The thin guy the bartender had pointed out was standing up slowly and sliding on a bright red coat. I saw him actually put chicken fingers in his coat pockets, then throw some money down on the table.

"Eddie," I said, trying to catch my old friend's attention. With his dhampir senses, he noticed my words even over the growing hubbub in the bar. I gestured with my head to the thin guy, and Eddie understood and shifted his stance a little.

"Listen," Morgan was saying. "I swear to God on a stack of Bibles that I don't know where any missing kids are, but if I can help you find them I will." Then he made the mistake of putting what he must have thought was a calming hand on Rose's shoulder. "If I can help..."

Rose moved so quickly that I could hardly make out her movements, but the next thing I knew, poor Morgan was on the ground, and Rose was straddling him. "Don't touch me," she hissed.

I understood what was going on. Rose was in battle mode, and saw everything as a threat. In her normal job, this was probably a good thing, but here among humans, it really wasn't. Also, since she was so locked into this target, she had missed the other guy, the one with the chicken fingers in the pockets of his red coat, who was now making his way steadily to the door.

"Rose," I called, and she looked up at me. "Rose, that's not the guy. It's –"

Then a lot of things seemed to happen at once. Two huge bouncers – the ones who had checked our IDs before – came running into the room to pull Rose off of Morgan. She was a match for them, of course, but in a crowded space like this, the fight that ensued was awkward and confusing, all the more so since Rose didn't really want to hurt any humans who were just doing their jobs. Meanwhile, Eddie went running after Red Coat, and managed to knock him to the ground forcefully enough that one of the chicken fingers was thrown out of his coat pocket. As for me, I was just trying to get outside so that I could alert everyone else about what was going on, but all the people who had been sitting down eating had already gotten to their feet to watch the fights, and it was hard to move as much as an inch. I guess it was fun for them to watch a good looking woman like Rose holding her own against two bouncers, each of whom could have been a stand-in for Shrek, should anyone ever make a live-action movie out of the old cartoon.

After a few moments of general melee, I guess someone made the connection between Rose and Eddie, and two bar patrons jumped into the fray to defend Red Coat. Eddie managed to fight them off, but in the process, lost hold of Red Coat, who again began trying to make his way outside. Meanwhile, a drunk guy near me was accidentally elbowed in the face by another drunk guy, and responded with a strong shove. Someone else shoved back, and it ricocheted back through the crowd, and I ended up getting nearly knocked off my feet. I sank to a crouch and managed to crawl under a table. I was cornered, but I was much more worried that Red Coat would get away than I was worried for my own safety. I drew in a deep breath and shouted "Adrian! Help us!" as loudly as I could. He wasn't the best fighter in the group, but he had the best hearing of anyone outside, except for maybe Sonya, and he was most likely to be listening for my voice.

Sure enough, a few moments later I heard a voice rising over the fray – Dimitri's. I ducked out from under the table in time to see Dimitri tackle one of the bouncers currently making things so tough on Rose. I also saw Adrian, who waved at me, then held up one finger, and then disappeared again. I figured that he meant he'd be back in one minute, and I ducked back under the table – only to find Morgan, the blond guy who Rose had mistakenly attacked. There was a thin trickle of blood running down his face.

"Are you ok?" he asked me.

"I'm ok," I answered. "You?" I gestured to his forehead.

"I'll be ok," he said.

I stood up for a second, just long enough to pull a slightly damp napkin from the tabletop, and then crouched down to hold it against his bloody forehead. "Sit up as straight as you can," I advised. "Apply pressure. You'll be ok."

"I'll get a doc to look at it later, when I go to work," he answered, taking hold of the napkin.

"Good idea," I said.

I was just starting to wonder what was keeping Adrian when I heard a strong female voice ring through the room. It was just two words: "Calm down." And a moment after I heard the words, I started to feel really... well, really calm. So did everyone else apparently, since the sounds of fighting slowed down and then stopped completely.

I felt almost too calm to stand up, but I also recognized compulsion when I felt it, and fought against it long enough to rise to my feet. Then I saw, framed in the doorway, Adrian and Sonya, holding hands. They must have worked this magic together, I realized, which explained why it was so very powerful. Adrian spotted me and waved me over to him, relief all over his face. I walked as if I were in a dream, stepping over spilled beer and a few broken chair legs. The crowd parted respectfully. The bartender looked over at me and waved sleepily, and I waved back.

Dimitri, Rose, and Eddie had already gotten to their feet. Eddie grabbed hold of Red Coat, and he and Dimitri began pulling him outside, with Rose cautiously bringing up the rear. The man wasn't protesting, but would probably begin fighting back the moment he was outside the sphere of the spirit magic.

"Everything is fine," Sonya said to the crowd. "No need to worry about any of the fights here tonight."

"It was just one of those funny things that happen at bars," Adrian said. "Not worth mentioning to anyone else, or thinking about again." Then he turned to me, and said in a quieter tone. "Go on outside, sweetheart. I want to know you're ok before Sonya and I stop broadcasting."

"One thing first," I said, and called to Morgan, who walked over to me like a sleepwalker. "Come outside with me," I said, offering my hand to him, and he gave me his hand like a child would have done. We walked out together, dreamily.

Back outside in the gravel parking lot, Red Coat was whimpering in Eddie's grip. "Don't hurt me," he said. "It wasn't my idea or anything."

Mikhail, who must have been watching the door this whole time, looked over at me. "Is Sonya ok in there?" he asked.

"She and Adrian have the whole bar under control," I said. "But they might need a little help exiting..."

"I'm on it," he said, and ran past me to go inside.

"What the hell is going on?" Morgan asked me, as the last bit of compulsion-calmness wore off. He was looking over at Rose, who was busy talking to Dimitri, probably comparing notes on the battle. Or maybe they were just flirting a little – it was hard to tell with them. Morgan didn't look so happy to see Rose, either because he was angry at having been attacked out of the blue, or because he was just sad to see that she apparently already had a man in her life.

"It's hard to explain," I said. "Just go sit down over there." I gestured to a concrete ledge that bordered the path to the door. "I'm going to get a friend of mine to look at your head in a minute or two. Just keep the pressure on."

"Um, okay, whatever," he said, and sat down obediently. Clearly he had given up on getting any answers.

I looked back over at Red Coat. Eddie was pinning the man's arms behind his back with apparently no effort, and Rose and Dimitri were right next to them, so it seemed pretty safe to approach. I took a few steps towards the man who I was fairly certain was at least partially responsible for the disappearance of my daughters. I didn't know what to say to him, and I looked away, my gaze traveling the faces of the dhampirs who'd helped me get this far.

"Is everyone ok?" I asked, not making any eye contact with Red Coat.

Dimitri and Eddie assured me that they were, and asked me how I was. I had escaped unhurt, and said so, and then I looked over at Rose, who had fallen silent. She was looking at Morgan, whose eyes seemed fixed on his shoes.

"Wow, I really messed that one up," Rose said. "I'm sorry, guys."

"He fit the description," I said. "I would have thought the same thing."

"Says the girl who actually spotted the right guy," Rose said.

"I was convinced the blond guy was the one, too," Eddie said.

"It was only _logical_ of you, Roza," Dimitri said, in a voice that sounded stern to me but that made Rose smile.

"Besides," I said. "The only reason that I had time to look for another suspect was that I was confident that you could handle the blond guy all on your own. So, really – it was a team effort."

"Fine, fine," Rose said. She really looked mortified. "Let's drop it. So!" She clapped her hands together once. "What are we going to _do_ with this jerk?"

"I kind of thought that I'd be questioning him," Adrian called, as he, Sonya, and Mikhail walked out of the bar. He walked hurriedly over to us, and immediately hugged me to him. Sonya and Mikhail hung back, and as I looked over Adrian's shoulder, I saw Mikhail put his arms around his wife.

Adrian and I took a brief moment to reassure each other that we were both ok. Then I asked him if he needed a rest before he "questioned" Red Coat. After all, the Moroi had just unleashed a huge amount of spirit energy, and I was pretty sure that the "questioning" he had in mind for our captive would involve even more magic.

"I'm fine," he said. "Anyway, it pretty much has to be me. Sonya doesn't really like using compulsion. It took some convincing to even get her to agree to _that_ back there." He made a face.

"Let's find a place to sit him down for a minute," Rose said, and began looking around.

"While you're doing that, let me ask Sonya something," I said, and jogged over to the Moroi woman, who was talking in low tones to her husband. "Sorry to interrupt," I said when I reached them.

"Oh, not at all," Sonya said, in that weirdly pleasant tone of hers. "Do you need something?"

"I don't need anything," I said, "but _he_ does." I directed her attention to poor Morgan, who was still sitting on the concrete ledge. "That's the guy Rose accidentally beat up a little," I explained, seeing her blank expression. "He's bleeding, and..."

She nodded. "And he needs some healing," she said. "Fair enough. I'll take a look." And she and Mikhail, still holding hands, went over to where Morgan was waiting.

Satisfied that the poor guy would be taken care of, I returned to Adrian's side. He put his arm around me, and we watched as the dhampirs continued to prepare Red Coat for questioning. Rose had opened the hatchback of her SUV, and Dimitri forced the man to sit on the edge, so that his feet were dangling an inch or two below the bumper. Eddie was inside the trunk as well, and it looked like he was tying the man's hands behind his back.

"What took you so long in there?" I asked Adrian in an undertone.

"I was writing the bartender a check for some of the damages," Adrian said. "It's his place, and I felt bad for the guy."

I smiled at him and gave him a kiss on the cheek. "You're the best," I said.

"Pretty much," he said, and grinned.

After a few moments, Dimtri nodded at Adrian in a "go ahead" kind of gesture, and Adrian approached the nervous human.

"You're going to answer all my questions completely and honestly," Adrian said, and the man responded with slack-jawed agreement. "Oh, he's easy," Adrian said to me, in a low voice. "Thank God."

And then the questioning began in earnest.


	14. Up and Up

**Chapter 14: Up and Up**

"You guys ok back there?" Rose asked, breaking the silence. None of us had said a word since we'd crossed the Virginia state line almost half an hour ago.

"We're doing just peachy keen," Adrian said, grandly and falsely. I was leaning against him in the back seat of the car, and when he spoke, I felt his rib cage vibrate against my back. "How are you up there, little Belikova?" he asked.

"Ready to kick ass is how I am," Rose said. "God, when I think about how... Well, you know." She let out a sort of growling noise. "What about you, Sydney? You 'k?"

"I just want it to be over," I said, faintly. "One way or another. I want it to be tomorrow."

"Me too," Adrian said, stroking my arm. "Tomorrow is going to be awesome. I have plans with a really hot girl and these two really cute kids."

"Oh god," I said. "That was supposed to be this weekend. Our trip to DC. I had actually forgotten."

"_I_ hadn't," Adrian said. "And as far as I know, it's still happening. We just hit a little snag and have to rescue the girls from a gang of dimwitted hired thugs. Easy-peasy."

"Sure," I said. "Easy-peasy."

"You know," Adrian said. "This was supposed to be a surprise, but I think I'll tell you now – I have an appointment booked for us to tour the White House tomorrow afternoon."

"Really?" I said. "The girls would have loved that. Violet especially."

"Correction – they _are_ going to love it," Adrian said firmly.

"Yeah," I said. "They're going to be in heaven." But then the double meaning of what I'd just said hit me full in the face and I felt tears flood my eyes.

"Heaven on earth," Adrian corrected, quickly. "Hey, come on, sweetheart. We agreed we'd stay positive. I mean, our new idiot friend, Chicken Pockets, said that the girls were fine when he left, right?" I nodded. "And didn't he say that all the other idiots were all under strict orders not to hurt the girls?" I nodded again. "So there you go," Adrian said. "It's ok. They're fine."

I nodded once more, made myself take a few deep breaths, then asked Rose, "Are we almost there?"

"Almost," she said. "I'm driving as fast as I can on these awful roads. If Josh's directions are right, we're only about five or ten minutes away, I think."

"I have never met anyone so easy to compel as Chicken Pockets," Adrian said, shaking his head. "He must be as dumb as a stump."

"Explains his chosen profession," Rose said. "Witness intimidation doesn't require much in the way of skills or talent."

"The smartest thing that guy ever did was run off," Adrian said.

"Possibly the _only_ smart thing he ever did," I said.

The guy in the red coat – his name was Josh, though I preferred Adrian's nickname, Chicken Pockets – had explained to us that he'd been hired, with four other guys, to kidnap Amy and Violet. At first, it had seemed like easy money to Josh. He was good at making threats, he said, since he'd done it before as a "profession." Besides, he told us, he wasn't afraid of two little girls. But after he'd had some time to think about the kidnapping, he realized that he'd actually brought Violet and Amy across state lines, a federal crime. That, coupled with the low pay he'd been offered and the fact that the 'hideout' he'd been told to wait in gave him the creeps, had made him rethink the whole thing. Telling the other guys that he was going out for some cigarettes, he'd made a break for it. When we'd caught up to him at Fat Bobby's roadhouse, he had been on his way to Raleigh, where he knew someone who worked at a chop-shop. Josh was planning to take the gray sedan – a car he'd been lent for the duration of the kidnapping – to his friend, get whatever cash he could for it, and run off to Mexico for a while. Of course, he hadn't been planning on meeting up with us, nor had he been planning on ending up unconscious and bound in the cargo hatch of an SUV driven by a 6'7 dhampir. So few people _do_ plan for things like that.

"Hey," Adrian said, with what I knew was a bit of forced cheerfulness. "Did I tell you about the hotel suite I reserved for the weekend?"

"Adrian," I said, miserably. "Let's not talk about that any more."

"I _want_ to talk about it," Adrian said. "We _should_ talk about it, since it's where we're going after this, once we get the girls back."

I drew in a slow breath. "Tell me," I said.

"It's the best suite in the hotel. Top floor. It's got a huge living room area with a fireplace, and then two bedrooms, each with two king size beds. The girls can stay in one room, and they'll get their own bathroom and everything. You and I get the other room." He leaned around me to kiss my cheek. "We don't really need two beds, of course, but I guess it could be handy in case we break one of them..."

Against all sense, I found myself smiling. "I'm sure," I said. How did Adrian do that – make me smile even when I'd been just about to cry?

"And there's a jacuzzi in our room, too," Adrian said. "So be sure _not_ to bring a bathing suit."

"Ok, ew," said Rose, from the front seat. "Please, guys. Can you not talk about that kind of thing in front of me?"

"You're just jealous," Adrian said.

"Tell my _husband_ how jealous I am," Rose said tartly.

"_You_ tell him," Adrian said. "He's about half a foot taller than me. I'm not stupid." They both laughed, and I got the feeling that this was well-trod conversational ground for them. They had clearly gotten pretty comfortable with each other over the years, and had more or less gotten over the hurts caused by their short, doomed relationship. It was nice to see.

"Do you guys think this is it?" Rose asked, pausing by a turnoff for something that was either a rural dirt road or a very long driveway. We all peered down the road, but very little of it was visible in the moonlight, at least, not to me. Behind us, Dimitri's car paused too, and I had to guess that his group was having pretty much the same conversation as we were.

"There's a house about a mile or so up the road, at the top of a little hill," Adrian said, squinting a little. "And it looks pretty much like what Chicken Pockets described."

"Ok great," said Rose, and opened her window to give Dimitri a hand signal that seemed to mean "turn left." Both cars made the turn, and I felt all my muscles clench as I realized how close we now were to finding Amy and Violet.

Our SUVs bumped along the dirt road, and I had to sit up properly to keep from falling off the seat. Then Rose turned off the headlights, as did Dimitri in his car, and we both began driving in the dark. Rose's nightvision was sufficient to light the way for her, especially in the bright moonlight, but still, it was a nerve-wracking ride. Finally, Rose edged the car to a stop, and Dimitri parked as well.

We all got out of the car, moving as quietly as possible, and got into a circle to confer. The temperature had dropped a good five or ten degrees in the past hour, and I jammed my hands into my pockets to keep them warm.

"I think that Rose and I should go to the front door," Dimitri said. His Russian accent was still audible, despite the passage of ten years. "We'll knock and get their attention. Meanwhile, Eddie and Mikhail will sneak around to the back, either to a door or a window. While Rose and I deal with the four human criminals, Eddie and Mikhail will find the children and bring them outside to safety."

"May I encourage non-lethal methods, where possible?" Sonya put in, surprising me a little. I hadn't even noticed her standing there until that moment.

"Of course," Mikhail said, and everyone nodded.

"And what will Adrian and I be doing during all of this?" I asked.

Dimitri met my eye, then said, in Russian, "You'll wait outside, where it is safe, my friend."

"That's what _you_ think," I answered, also in Russian. Next to me, Adrian let out a little laugh. He had no idea what I had said, of course, but he probably just appreciated that I was sass-mouthing the intimidating dhampir in his native language.

"Let me guess," Rose said. "Sydney wants to come in with us."

"Of course she does," Eddie said. "She's their mother. I say we let her come with us."

"No way," Rose said.

"She's the one who found the guy at the roadhouse," Eddie said.

"But these men could have guns," Dimitri said. "This is Guardian work." Then he added, in Russian, "I promise you, Sydney, that I will protect your children as if they were mine."

"English, please," Rose said, in a singsong voice.

"The guys _could_ have guns," Mikhail said, responding to Dimitri's earlier comment. "Sydney, I respect you a great deal, but I think you'll be safer out here."

"Look," Adrian said. "It's cold out here and I'm sick of arguing. You four can go rescue the girls while we helpless non-dhampirs wait outside, ok?"

Rose and Dimitri eyed him warily. Eddie caught my eye and smiled, and I pressed my lips together to keep from smiling back.

"_There_," Mikhail said, pleasantly. "It's settled. We'll be out again before you know it, Sydney and Adrian."

Rose paused, eyes narrowed. "_Stay here_, Adrian," she said.

Adrian held up one hand as if it were a paw and stuck out hi tongue. "Woof! Woof!" he said.

Rose rolled her eyes. "That goes for you, too, Sydney," she said and I nodded obediently.

Then Mikhail gave Sonya a quick kiss and the four Guardians began walking down the road up the hill, towards the house. Now that my eyes had gotten used to the dark, I could see the house pretty clearly. It looked a little like the stereotypical haunted house from a horror movie, and I shuddered to think what it might look like on the inside. I could smell the smoke from a fire in the fireplace, but there didn't seem to be any lights on, so I wondered if there was any electricity, heat, or plumbing.

Once the dhampirs had gotten a short distance up the road, Sonya asked, "How long are you going to wait until you follow them?"

"I figure about five minutes," Adrian said. "What do you think, sweetheart?"

"Sounds good," I said.

Sonya nodded. "Fair enough," she said.

"Just let me get something," I said, and went back into the car to dig through the duffel bag I'd brought. I found a flashlight and some lock busting compound and slipped them both into my pockets. When I came back, Sonya was bending over and dipping her hands into a muddy looking puddle. As Adrian and I watched, puzzled, she straightened up again, her cupped hands now full of water. Then, to my surprise, the water in her hand began to change shape slowly.

"I've been working on my sub-specialization," she explained. "It's water obviously. It's difficult, but I find it therapeutic."

"Using fire helps me relax in a weird way too, sometimes," Adrian said. "It's funny how that works."

We both watched as the water in Sonya's hand turned into the familiar shape of a lily. She held it out to me and asked, "What happened to your lily, Sydney?" Then the flower dissolved and dribbled down to the ground again, and Sonya wiped her hands on her coat.

"I left the alchemists," I said. "If you don't keep touching up those tattoos, they fade."

"The tattoos are meant to protect you, right?" she asked.

"They speed healing, mainly," I said. "And they keep people from getting sick."

She peered at me thoughtfully. "But I feel as though you are still protected," she said. "Somehow, you are. I'm certain."

"Power of love," Adrian said, putting his arm around me. It was cold out, and his warm body against me was even more welcome than usual.

Sonya smiled. "You guys make a nice couple," she said. "It's not normal, of course, but what _is_, these days?"

"It doesn't... you know... gross you out?" I asked.

"No," she said. "I don't see why other people's love lives are my concern. I think love is love, and love is beautiful."

"Thanks," I said. "It's nice to know someone supports us."

"I fear that many Moroi would not," Sonya said. "Especially stodgy royal types." Her eyes widened a little and she added, "No offense, Adrian."

"None taken," Adrian said. "I might be royal, but I'm not stodgy. My parents are, though. My mother the jail-bird doesn't have a leg to stand on, propriety-wise, if you ask _me_. But I'm sure that my dad would do the yelling for the both of them." He rolled his eyes.

"At least your dad wouldn't have you kidnapped and brainwashed," I said.

"Probably not," Adrian said.

"Would your father really do that to you, Sydney?" Sonya asked.

"It's possible," I said. "When the girls first went missing, I actually thought it was his doing."

"How did you rule him out as a suspect?"

"I called him and he didn't seem to know anything about it," I said. "He just invited me for a visit."

"Are you going to go?" Sonya asked.

I narrowed my eyes. "Are you crazy?" I asked. For some reason, Sonya flinched at the question, but I went on. "Now that it's looking pretty sure that I'll be getting divorce, I'll be even more of a black sheep in the family. If my father knew about Adrian, or the truth about Amy, he'd disown us all, or ship us off for re-education."

"People change as they get older," Sonya said. "He might be different now than what you expect, or what he used to be."

"I'm not holding my breath," I said.

"That's wise," Sonya answered, calmly. "You'll need it for what you're about to do." She paused. "Are you going to be able to see ok, Sydney? It must be pretty dark out here for you."

"I have a flashlight," I said.

"I can always guide you if you can't see," Adrian said, squeezing me to him.

"When I was Strigoi, the night seemed as bright as day," Sonya mused, and a chill ran through me. "Of course," she added, "there was no joy to the night or the day. There was no joy at all." She gave me a bright smile. "Now there's happiness all the time. I owe you and Rose so much for what you did for me."

"I didn't do so much," I said. "I just sort of... hid behind a couch."

"You stayed with me for a while after the change," Sonya said. "I never forgot your kindness."

"Um, thanks," I said. "I'm glad I could help." I looked over at Adrian helplessly.

"I guess it's been five minutes," Sonya said. "Go on, you two. Save your daughters."

"Oh, thanks," I said. "I guess we'll see you shortly."

"Yes," she said. "Good luck."

We said a quick goodbye, and then Adrian and I set off up the hill. He offered me his hand to hold, and it wasn't just a romantic gesture on his part – I needed his guidance along the dark path. If it weren't for the moonlight, I would have needed him to actually carry me. It was too bad that I couldn't use the flashlight without worry that the light would be seen by one of the gang.

After we had walked for about a minute, Adrian suddenly stopped in his tracks. "I just heard a gun go off," he said.

"Oh, God," I whispered, my mind suddenly full of images of my friends covered in blood.

"We have to remember that all those dhampirs are professional Guardians," Adrian said, in a slightly nervous tone. "No way they're getting taken down by some incredibly stupid humans."

"Hey, don't knock humans," I said, lightly.

"I wouldn't dare," Adrian said. "Two of my favorite people are humans." He squeezed my hand. "Are you ok to keep going?"

"Yes," I said. "Are you?"

"Try and stop me," he said, and we began walking again.

We were approaching the house on its right side, and as we got closer and closer, I studied it, trying to imagine what it was like on the inside. It was three stories tall, and must have once been a grand house, but that was long ago now. Several of the windows were broken, and the paint was peeling off in chunks. I began to feel sort of sorry for the house, now that I could see it more clearly. The world had moved on and left this house behind.

"Wow," Adrian whispered. "I may have to paint this place someday."

"Maybe we can come back here with the girls someday and you can paint a family portrait," I said, not even sure whether I was joking.

"I won't need to come back," Adrian said. "I don't think I'll ever forget how it looks."

"Me either," I said. In the silence that followed, I could hear shouts coming from the house. Adrian and I paused to listen, and then Adrian pulled me close to him to whisper, "I hear Rose and Dimitri, and two unfamiliar male voices. But I see at least five auras in there, maybe six... It's hard to separate them."

I made a mental note to ask him when he'd learned to see auras through walls, then whispered, "What are they saying?"

"Arguing," Adrian said. "Rose is saying, 'Surrender, we have you surrounded,' stuff like that. The guys are saying, 'No way, we're going to shoot our way out,' stuff like that."

"What about the girls?"

Adrian stared into the distance as he listened. "No one's talking about them," he whispered, finally. Then we looked at each other, nodded, and continued walking forward.

Now we were walking through weeds so tall that it felt like we were wading through water. We kept out of the sight line of the one large window, and when we reached the house finally we paused once more. I let Adrian draw me very near so he could whisper right into my ear. "I hear Eddie and Mikhail talking in the backyard," he whispered. "They already searched the house and didn't find the girls."

My stomach churned, but I forced myself to stay as calm as possible. "What are they doing now, then?"

"Arguing with one of the guys, trying to find out where the girls are," he answered. "Rose and Dimitri are still in their standoff inside." I nodded – I could hear them now, too, exchanging threats with the goons. "So, what do you think we should do, sweetheart?" Adrian asked.

"We either try to help Rose and Dimitri with their standoff," I answered, "or go inside and search again for the girls."

"I vote the latter," Adrian whispered. "The Belikovs will be fine. And I have better senses than dhampirs. I'll be able to sense things that they miss."

I had been hoping he'd choose that option, but I kept my face neutral. "We can go in right through the front door at this point," I said, as quietly as I could. "I don't think anyone will notice us in the middle of their drama."

Adrian nodded and offered me his arm, and we waded through the weeds around the left corner of the house, along a short path, and then to the front door of the house. The door was hanging pathetically from one edge, like a loose tooth one day from falling out. Adrian and I held hands and stepped through the doorway.

It was almost completely dark inside, except for the fitful moonlight which came in through a few small windows. The air smelled of dust and woodsmoke. The shouting was continuing from somewhere to our right, and Adrian took my hand and began guiding me to the left. He leaned close and whispered, "stairs," and I nodded, knowing he could see me. I took another few small steps forward through the darkness, and then Adrian lifted my hand and placed it on what turned out to be a railing. Slowly, I began climbing the stairs, hoping that the wood beneath my feet wouldn't give way.

Up we climbed, up and up. Once, one of the stairs let out a huge "creeeeaak" and we both froze for a few moments, fearing that someone would come to investigate – though of course, that was pretty unlikely, given as how the others were in the middle of a Wild-West style standoff in the living room. When we were sure that no one was coming, we began moving again, placing our feet lightly, hoping to avoid any more loud noises.

It seemed to take forever to climb that narrow, dark staircase. But finally we emerged on the second floor, where a big window let in a lot of moonlight. Adrian murmured, "There's no scent of them here, at all. Let's go up another floor." I agreed, and let him guide me through the dim hallway to another set of stairs, which we began to climb.

This was even narrower than the previous staircase, and the stairs were further apart. Climbing it in the near total darkness would have been terrifying without Adrian, and even with him, it was hard. I promised myself that I could freak out when this whole thing was over, and kept moving, up and up and up.

We had gone only about halfway up the stairs when Adrian gripped my arm, pulling me to a stop.

"What is it?" I whispered.

He gave no immediate reply, and I figured that he was listening to something that I couldn't hear. After a long moment, he said, "One of those idiots just threw a log from the fireplace at Dimitri, and one of the curtains caught on fire."

"Oh my God," I whispered, and then we began running up the stairs, no longer concerned about the sound of our feet on the stairs, or anything else but finding Violet and Amy as fast as we could.

We emerged from the staircase to find ourselves in a very small landing area, lit by the moonlight coming in through two large windows. There were two doors here, one on each side of the landing, and both of them had been torn off their hinges. We immediately began looking around wildly for any sign of the girls.

"They _were_ here, at least," he said, with quiet intensity. "I can smell them... This is driving me crazy." He ran into one of the rooms, which was almost empty except for a dingy mattress and an old crocheted blanket. Adrian picked it up and sniffed it. "They _were_ here for sure," he whispered. Then he went over to the doorway and got to his knees. "There's a little of Violet and Amy's blood here," he said, his fingers running over the ground.

"Oh, God," I said. "Oh, God. Please." I took a few short, hysterical breaths, then asked Adrian, "Where else did you smell them?"

I could almost feel his effort as he pulled himself together. "The scent was strong in the hallway, too," he said. "But not on the stairs."

"So what does that mean?" I asked, my voice rising in pitch with every syllable.

"I don't know," he said, in a strained voice. "But let's go back out into the hall."

I nodded, and we left the room and the dingy mattress behind. Back in the hall, I again began to shine my flashlight around, until Adrian put his hand on my arm and whispered, "Hold on. Let me see something."

I didn't stop to ask why. I just turned the flashlight off and waited to see what Adrian would do next. In the moonlight, I saw him look everywhere around the room – the walls, the floors, and then the ceiling. That was when he let out a yelp of surprise.

"They're in the ceiling," he said, clutching my arm. "I see their auras."

"They're alive," I said, in a weird, high pitched voice.

"Yes," he said, smiling. "They're alive. And there's something in the ceiling..."

I turned my flashlight on and shined it at the area of the ceiling that Adrian pointed out, and we both saw it: a rectangular hatch that must lead to an attic or storage space. Hanging down from the middle of the hatch was a short string.

"Girls," I called, not caring if anyone else heard me. "Amy, Violet, it's Mommy. Are you there?" But there was no answer.

With an expectant look on his face, Adrian pulled the string, but the hatch didn't budge. "I think it's locked," he said.

"Ok, easy peasy," I said, feeling oddly disembodied. I dragged a small wooden chair from the corner of the hall to the spot right under the door. "Stand on that," I ordered Adrian, and he did as I asked without question. "Can you reach the lock?" I asked.

"I think so," he said, stretching a little.

"Then take some of this stuff," I said, and pulled a small bottle from my pocket. "It's lock buster."

I gave him instructions on how to apply the compound, and then we watched as the metal dissolved and fell out of the hatch and onto the floor. Once the bubbling on the wood had stopped, he pulled the string again. This time, the hatch opened easily. As it did, a small wooden ladder descended to allow access.

I climbed the ladder with my heart in my throat, then turned on my flashlight and shined it around. I was in a small dusty attic, not much bigger than the cabin of an American sedan. The ceilings were so low that I couldn't even stand up fully, and there were no windows. But in the midst of this ugliness there were the two most beautiful things in the world: Amy and Violet.

Amy was closer to me, and I rolled her onto her back, trying to shake her awake. "Baby?" I called. "Amy?"

Adrian was up right behind me, and seeing me with Amy, crawled over to Violet and gently tried to wake her, too. But almost immediately he let out a started yell.

"What?" I asked.

"Her arm is broken," he said, in a voice that was somewhere between a whisper and a growl.

"Oh God oh God oh God," I said, and began to gently touch Amy's arms and legs, feeling for breaks. "Can you fix it, Adrian, please?"

"Bones are tricky," Adrian said. "I don't want to rush it and mess it up."

I knew he was right. There was a fire spreading through this house – we didn't have time for broken arms. "Ok, ok, let's just get them out of here," I said. "You can heal them in the car."

"My thoughts exactly," Adrian said. "Is Amy ok?"

I had finished my quick examination of Amy, and thankfully, though she had a few small bruises and scrapes, she had no broken bones that I could feel. "I think so," I said. "Let's move."

I went back down the ladder, then let Adrian slowly lower first Amy, then Violet, down into my arms. Unfortunately, as I was just getting Violet to the floor, she began to wake up. She began to cry almost immediately, and I hugged her as best I could without bumping into her injured arm.

"Baby," I said. "It's Mommy. I'm here to take you home."

"Mommy," she cried, in a sleepy voice. "My arm hurts so much."

"I know," I said. "I know. We're going to fix it really soon, ok? We'll fix it so it won't hurt."

Adrian practically jumped out of the hatch in his hurry to get down to the ground. He stumbled over and knelt down by my side.

"Hi, Miss Purple," he said, stroking Violet's cheek. "Look at me, ok?"

"H-h-h-hi M-m-mister Adr-i-i-ian," she sobbed, and turned her head to meet his eyes.

"It doesn't hurt, right?" he said, and immediately her body relaxed.

"No, it doesn't," she said, sounding slightly surprised.

"Ok, good," he said, and scooped her up into his arms. To me, he added, "Temp fix. Can you carry Amy? I'll want to keep Violet near me..."

"I can carry Amy," I said, and with a bit of effort, picked her up.

"Is Amy ok?" Violet asked me, as Adrian turned towards the stairs back down.

"She's fine, she's just sleeping," I said, and then almost bumped into Adrian, who had stopped at the top of the stairs.

"The fire's up to the second floor," he said. "I can _feel_ it. It's weird. Fire sense..."

"So we can't go downstairs?" I asked.

"No," he said. "We wouldn't make it to the next staircase down to the ground floor."

My strength deserted me and I let Amy down to the ground again. "But... we can't stay _here_," I murmured. I heard Violet let out a little sob.

"I know we can't," Adrian said. "But the second floor isn't safe."

"So... now what?" I whispered, wrapping my arms around my sleeping daughter protectively, though of course there was no way I could protect her from a fire.

"We'll think of something," Adrian said, as a wave of heat came up towards us from the stairs.

_A few Author's Notes:_

_1. I know, I know, a cliff-hanger... sorry 'bout it. But it was post this now, or wait and post a 20,000 word chapter a lot later, so I figured you guys might like an update now instead! :)_

_2. __For my non-US readers, some of you might use a different system for numbering floors/storeys in a building than we do in the US. In the US, the ground floor is also called the first floor, and then you walk up one flight of stairs to the second floor. I know that in many other countries, you enter on the ground floor, and the "first floor" is what we in the US would call the "second floor." So Sydney and co. are trapped on the US "third floor" right now, which would probably be called the "second floor" in many other countries. _

_3. I had the whole fire thing plotted out before I remembered a picture I'd seen from that video trailer they made for TIS, the one that suggests that some sort of fire happens in TIS. So I'm sorry if this is too similar to TIS (though I haven't read it, so maybe it isn't). Also, maybe the conversation between Sydney and Sonya in this chapter might go over some of the same ground from TGL, since I know Sonya is in TGL a bit and maybe they talk at some point (though as you guys know I haven't read TGL either). I guess I might just have to give in and read TGL and TIS since I think I could still write _Door in the Tree_ even knowing what's canon now. I guess if I haven't finished _Door in the Tree_ by the time FH comes out I'll read TGL at least. _

_4. Writing action sequences is SO difficult for me. But I'm doing my best. AND I'm off of my antibiotics as of yesterday! So fingers crossed I get the next update up by Monday or Tuesday. My revised estimate for total number of chapters is 21._


	15. My Heroes

**Chapter 15: My Heroes**

Adrian put Violet down, telling her to run back towards the far end of the hall. Then he turned towards the stairs and began staring straight ahead, an intense look on his face. I sensed an outlay of power from him, similar to what I'd experienced when I was around Jill when she did her water magic.

Violet followed instructions and ran to the far end of the hall. I followed suit, a sleeping Amy in my arms.

"What's Mr. Adrian doing?" Violet asked. "Is the house on fire? Are we going to die?"

"We're going to be ok, sweetheart," I said as I lowered Amy to the floor. "We _are_. Adrian and I have been in worse situations than this and we always got away."

"But if the house is on – Ow! Oh, ow! Oh, Mommy... my arm hurts again." Violet began to cry again, and I realized that Adrian's compulsion over her had worn off. I had known from the start that the compulsion-fix was a temporary one at best, which is why Adrian had wanted to keep Violet by his side – and now that they were physically separated, and he was using his magic elsewhere, she was feeling the full force of the pain of her broken arm.

"You'll be ok," I said, pulling her into my lap gently so that I could hold her close. "It's only pain. In a few minutes it will be all gone. Adrian will fix it."

"I read about pain once in _Highlights_," she said, rocking back and forth a little. "It's your brain sending you a message that something is wrong so you don't... _ohhh_... do it again."

"That's exactly what it is," I said. "My smart little girl." I kissed her all over the top of her head, wishing I could take her pain away and take it into myself. "How did you hurt your arm in the first place, sweetie?"

Big tears rolled down her cheeks. "It was when we were trying to break the door," she said. "Amy and I were trying to escape. We broke the door a little, but it hurt my arm. And then the bad men came and put the cloth on Amy's face and she fell asleep."

It sounded like the "bad men" had used chloroform, both then and later on, when they'd moved the girls up to the attic. They must have given Amy a huge dose of the drug if she was still sleeping now, since normally her dhampir system would have shaken off the effects quickly.

"Well, you're safe now," I said, realizing as I spoke the words that it was a stupid thing to say. We were in a house on fire, for heaven's sake. I was trying to figure out what I could say to cheer Violet up that wouldn't be a huge lie when Adrian sank to his knees and sighed. "This is significantly harder than making a candle flame dance," he said over his shoulder. "I can only keep the fire at bay, Sydney. I can't push it back far enough for us to go down the stairs."

"It's ok," I called to him, forcing my voice to stay steady. "You're doing great. We'll find another way out."

"Yes, good job, Mister Adrian," Violet said, though she couldn't possibly understand what Adrian was doing. She had learned good sportmanship at school, and she was doing as she'd been taught. "Good effort," she added.

I put my arm around Violet and she leaned against me. "Squeeze my hand as hard as it hurts," I said, giving her my hand, and she began to squeeze. Then I forced myself to _think_.

We couldn't go down the stairs, but we had to go _down_. There was only one solution, then – to go out the window. But a three story drop was dangerous, I knew. If any of us landed wrong, we might even suffer a major injury – spinal or head damage. And if Adrian was the one who got hurt, there'd be no one to heal him. "Baby," I murmured to Violet. "I have to look around for something to help us escape, ok? Can you be my big girl and do something for me?" She nodded gravely. "Can you try to wake up your sister?" She nodded again, and I wiped away her tears and gave her a kiss on the forehead. "I love you very very much," I said, and got to my feet.

I paused a split second, then ran into the room where the girls had originally been held prisoner. As Violet began pleading with Amy to wake up – "Aim-Aim, wake up please, the house is on fire!" – I picked up the old blanket, wondering if I could use it as a kind of rope to climb down. But it was very old, and when I stretched it between my hands, it began to fray. It wouldn't even bear Violet's weight, I knew. Then, just before I threw the blanket back on the ground, something fell out of it, and I picked it up to examine it. It turned out to be a small hoody sweatshirt, about the right size for a four-year-old child. It was an exact match to the hoody sweatshirt that Violet was wearing, which was one I had never seen before. There was no time to wonder about this, however. I had to come up with a plan.

I threw both the hoody and the blanket back on the mattress, and then my eyes went down to the mattress itself. Suddenly, I had a very different idea. I ran over to the window and threw it open, and then began dragging the mattress over to the window. It was awkward to drag, but not that heavy, fortunately.

Just as I got the mattress over to the window, I heard Amy's voice from the hallway. "Stoppit, Violet," she whined. "I'm tii-ii-red." I wanted to run out to the hall and hug her, but I forced myself to continue what I was doing, which was lifting the mattress up to the window.

"Sorry," Violet answered. "But the house is on fire, Aim-Aim."

"What?" I heard Amy shriek. "Wait, is that Adrian?"

"Hi, sweetheart," Adrian called blearily from where he sat by the stairs.

"And I'm in here, baby," I called.

"Mom?" Amy said, and followed the sound of my voice into the room, Violet on her heels. "What are you doing?"

"Getting the mattress out the window," I said.

"Let me help," she said immediately. She might only have been nine, but she was probably stronger than most teenagers, and she was actually a great help to me as I pushed the heavy mattress from the window. Then all three of us – me, Amy, and a gape-mouthed Violet – watched as the mattress rolled end over end, coming to rest several meters from the house.

"Oh, no," I said. "Oh, no..."

"You wanted it right under the window, so we can jump and land on it, right?" Amy asked.

"That was the plan," I said.

"I can jump down and fix it," Amy said, with affected casualness.

"No way," I answered, automatically.

"Why not?" Amy asked. "I'm good at big jumps."

"She _is_," Violet agreed.

I turned and looked at both of them, my mind racing. Though my gut reaction had been to reject the idea out of hand, the more I thought about it, the more I realized that the idea had merit. Amy was a dhampir. She had jumped from a second floor window a couple months ago with not so much as a bruise. This was an old house with low ceilings, so the drop was less than 20 feet, and the ground was soft and muddy. I looked at my daughter's faces, down at the mattress on the ground, and then over to the doorway. "Adrian?" I called.

"Yes, sweetheart?" he answered.

"How much longer can you do... whatever you're doing?"

"Few... minutes..." he called.

"That's all we need," I said.

Letting Amy jump down to the ground to reposition the mattress was an insane idea, but it was the only one I had. It meant fully admitting what my daughter was and what she was capable of, and I knew that there would be no going back from that. Still, I knew it was better to try something crazy than just sit there and roast, and I had faith in my daughter, as young as she was.

I got down on one knee to look her in the eye. "Remember when I told you that you're a secret super-hero?" Amy nodded. "Well, you can be a hero today. I think you're right that you can jump from this window without hurting yourself."

"Really?" Amy said, her face shining with excitement. "You really think so, Mom?"

"I do," I said. "You learned how to land well in gymnastics, didn't you?" She nodded vigorously. "Ok," I said, and kissed her on the forehead. "Let's see what you can do."

"Cool!" she said, and immediately climbed up to the windowsill. "Here I go!" she said, then looked down and paused. "Wow, it's a little further down than I thought," she said.

"You don't have to do it," I said. "It's ok."

"No," she said, her voice a little more high pitched than usual. "I will. I'll be ok."

"You'll be fine," I said. "I believe in you, Amy." She nodded, then paused expectantly. It took me a minute to realize that she wanted another hug, but once I figured it out, I gladly threw my arms around her. She made a show of embarrassment, then gave me and Violet both a brave smile. Then she scrambled down so that she was dangling by her fingertips from the windowframe, paused, counted to three, and dropped to the ground. For a second, the world stood still as I watched her fall. But then she landed and immediately gave me the thumbs up. Then she began dragging the awkward mattress over to the spot under the window.

"Is she ok?" Violet asked. She couldn't see up over the window, so I carefully lifted her up so she could see Amy, alive and well and lugging the mattress over the uneven ground. "Oh, good," Violet said. "Amy's kind of my best friend. Don't tell her I said that, though."

"I wouldn't dare," I said, stroking her hair back from her tear-streaked face. "You know something, Vy? You've been just as brave as Amy tonight. You're just like a super-hero too, you know that?" She nodded and tried to smile. "As soon as we're down on the ground, Adrian can fix your arm up," I added. "It won't hurt at all after that. You just have to hold on for a few more minutes." Violet nodded again.

"Is this ok, Mom?" Amy shouted, and I looked down.

"Just a little _that_ way," I said, gesturing, since Amy wasn't sure about her left and right. Then I turned towards the hall and called, "Adrian, come in here, we're almost ready."

"Gladly," he shouted, and seconds later he was at my side. Even in the dim light, I could see how tired he was, and my heart went out to him. He knelt down by Violet and turned her to face to his. "You're ok," he whispered, wiping away her tears. "You're fine. It doesn't hurt at all anymore."

She nodded and smiled. "Thanks, Mister Adrian," she said. "That's much better. But um, my arm still feels weird." She held it out to one side.

"That's because I took away the pain, but I didn't fix it yet," he said. "I'll do that soon, ok?" She nodded, smiling. "For right now," he added, "you have to believe me that it doesn't hurt. If you believe it, it'll work better, ok?"

"Like fairies," Violet said, faintly. "You have to believe in them."

"Sure," Adrian said. "Like that."

"Is this right?" Amy called up, and Adrian and I looked down at the mattress.

"Good job, Amy!" I called. "That's perfect!"

"Ah," Adrian said. "We're jumping?"

"Yeah, we're jumping," I said. "I'm going next, and then you're going to help Violet jump, ok?"

"Can do," he said, nodding. I got the feeling he wasn't thrilled with the idea, but it's not as if we had a better option. "Hi Amy!" he called down.

"Hi!" she shouted, waving wildly. "Hi Adrian! Hi Mom! Hi Vy-Vy!"

"Hi, Aim-Aim," Violet called, and just after she spoke, I heard a strange rushing sound from the hall as the fire came up the stairs. That was all the encouragement I needed to jump.

"I'm coming down, Amy," I shouted. "Get to the side, ok?" Amy gave me the thumbs up. Then I turned to Adrian and Violet. "Love you," I said to them. "Wish me luck."

"Good luck, Mommy," Violet said, and both she and Adrian gave me a quick hug. I didn't want to think much about what I had to do – I just climbed up to the windowframe and jumped, trying to keep my knees bent to absorb some of the shock of the landing. Even though I landed on the mattress, the impact shook me a little, but I got to my feet as quickly as I could, not wanting to worry my daughters. Amy looked far from worried. In fact, she was hopping up and down in her excitement.

"Yay, Mom!" she shouted. "That was awesome! So sweet!"

I ran over to her, knelt down, and hugged her as tightly as I could considering that all my muscles felt like jelly. Then I called up to the window, "We're ready for Violet!"

"One moment," Adrian called down.

I turned back to Amy. "Are you ok?" I asked her, taking a moment to enjoy the sight of her beautiful face. "Are you hurt? Adrian found some of your blood in the room."

"I'm fine," she said. "Got some scratches, that's all. Not like Violet. Are we going to take her a doctor, Mom? Her arm is really hurt bad."

"Don't worry," I said. "She'll be fine."

"It was my fault she got hurt," Amy said, a shadow of sadness crossing her face. I was going to ask her what she meant by that, but then Adrian shouted that he was going to jump. I turned to tell him that Violet should go first, but the next thing I knew, he was jumping down to the mattress with Violet in his arms. He landed hard, with Violet on top of him, and he let out a loud "Oof!"

I ran over to them, asking if they were ok.

"I'm fine, Mommy," Violet said. "Mr. Adrian?"

"I'm... grand..." he wheezed. "Never better."

"You did great, Adrian!" Amy yelled, leaping over to us. As she threw her arms around first Adrian and then Violet, I noticed that she was favoring one leg a little. So she _had_ hurt herself a little in the fall, I realized. But a small injury didn't matter right now. We were alive and more or less ok, and Adrian would fix our small hurts. He always did.

"Hi, A-mazing!" Adrian said. "You have no idea how glad I am to see you."

Just then, a plume of flame shot out from the roof, only a few meters from where we had just been standing. The sight spurred all of us into action. Adrian got to his feet, scooping Amy into his arms. I picked up Violet and we began running away from the house and down the hill.

Once we had gotten a safe distance from the burning house, Adrian and I stopped running and let the girls back down to the ground. Then we sat down, cuddling together and making a big deal out of how brave both girls had been. Violet sat in my lap, obviously wanting reassurances and affection after her ordeal. Amy was calmer, but it was clear that she was cold, since she was the only one without a coat or heavy sweatshirt. Adrian took off his long coat and his sweater, and then slipped the latter over Amy's head without asking her if she needed it. As she flopped her arms up and down comically to display how huge the sweater was on her, he put his coat back on over his undershirt and claimed he'd be warm enough in that. Then he gently lifted Violet's injured arm so that she'd extend it and lay it in his lap.

"Ok, Miss Purple," he said. "You've been very patient and brave, and now I'm going to do a trick to make you feel better." I saw him take a few deep breaths, preparing to use his magic.

"But if it's _broken_, you can't _fix_ it," Violet said, as Adrian's face began to show signs of his intense concentration.

"Maybe you can get a cast," Amy suggested, as if this were a delightful prospect. "I'll draw pretty pictures on it for you."

"Maybe," Violet said, and then, added in surprise, "Hey, that feels weird."

Over the years, Adrian had healed a few of my injuries, and I knew that the sensation was strange, a feeling of tingling, and of hot and cold. I knew that Violet must be experiencing that feeling now, as Adrian's gentle magic worked to slowly rejoin the edges of her broken bone. It took him several minutes, either because it was difficult work, or just because he was so tired from the massive amount of fire magic he'd had to use that day. Amy took Violet's free hand and told her terrible knock-knock jokes to distract her from the tickly healing sensation, and a few moments later Violet let out a little relieved sigh and said she felt all better. She shyly gave Adrian a thank-you hug and then snuggled back with me.

Then Adrian beckoned Amy closer to him, saying, "Ok, A-mazing, your turn, you little lunatic."

"What? I'm fine!"

"So there's nothing wrong with your left foot?" Adrian asked, innocently. "Nothing that's hurting a little?"

Amy crossed her arms defensively. "I didn't hurt myself when I jumped," she said.

"'Course not," Adrian said, and winked. "You didn't hurt your_self_, but the _ground_ might have hurt you a little bit." He grinned. "So give me your foot, kid." Amy rolled her eyes in the way only a pre-teen can, but she obediently put her sneaker in Adrian's lap. It took him only a moment to fix whatever was wrong with her – it must have just been a bad bruise on her heel or something like that– and then he said, "So, who wants to go find the car and get the heck out of here?"

"I do, I do," Amy said. "Come on, Vy-Vy!"

Amy helped Violet to her feet, and Adrian did the same for me. We took a few steps towards the spot where the car was parked and then I heard Mikhail calling, "Ivashkov! Is that you over there?"

"Who's that?" Violet asked me, reaching for my hand.

"That's our friend Mikhail," I said. "He's a good guy."

"Oh, good," Violet said, but didn't let go of my hand.

"I've been looking for your royal butt everywhere," Mikhail said, as he jogged up to us. "Hey, you have Sydney and the kids with you! Awesome! Oh, we were all so worried!"

"What about you guys?" I asked. "Are you guys all ok?" In all the chaos, I hadn't even had a second to worry about all my dhampir friends, and I felt faintly guilty now at my oversight.

"Dimitri has a few burns, and Sonya's looking after them," Mikhail said. "But otherwise we're all fine. Even those... not-so-nice people." The look on his face indicated that "not-so-nice people" was probably not his first choice of epithet for the kidnappers, and that he was just trying to be polite in front of the girls.

"Glad you're well, Mr. Sonya," Adrian said, clapping Mikhail on the shoulder. I half expected Mikhail to bridle at the nickname – a lot of men wouldn't like to be identified by their wife's name – but Mikhail just grinned.

"You too, Ivashkov," he said. "And all of you. You two must be Violet and Amy, right?"

Violet clung to me nervously, but offered a smile and a nod. Amy cheerfully offered her hand for him to shake, which he did. At their moment of contact, I saw her face twist in confusion. Then she turned to me and asked, "Mom? Is Mikhail related to us?"

"No," I said. "He's just a friend of ours."

She nodded, clearly confused by something. "Oh," she said. "Well, it's nice to meet you, anyway."

"Amy here just saved all of our lives," Adrian said grandly. "Didn't you, A-mazing?"

"We all worked together," she said, but beamed at the compliment.

I didn't really want to explain my decision to let my nine-year-old daughter jump out of a third floor window, so I quickly changed the subject by asking where everyone else was. Mikhail told us to follow him around to the front lawn of the house, which we did. There, we found the dhampirs standing guard over the four kidnappers, who were bound hand and foot and lying on the ground. Rose ran over to give me and Adrian each hugs, berating us soundly for having gone rogue while simultaneously shrieking about how glad she was to see us. She then got down on one knee to greet Amy and Violet, a big smile on her face.

Amy offered out her hand for a handshake, and when she touched Rose's hand, she reacted with confusion, as she had when she had touched Mikhail. I realized suddenly that she must be sensing that Rose and Mikhail were dhampirs like herself. She was using whatever innate ability dhampirs had to sense each other. It must have been confusing for her, considering that she didn't even know what a dhampir _was_. All she really knew was that there was something special and familiar about Rose and Mikhail. I knew that sometime soon I'd have to have a long and difficult talk with her. But she'd been through enough today. I wasn't about to tell her that she wasn't even fully human on the same day that she'd been kidnapped and forced to escape from a fire. So I just introduced both girls to Rose and the other people present - Dimitri, Eddie, and Sonya - saying that they were old friends of mine from before they were born. Though of course Amy reacted to Dimitri and Eddie with surprise and confusion, neither of the girls seemed particularly interested in how I'd met anyone in the group.

Then Rose caught us up on what she and the team had been doing. Apparently, Eddie and Mikhail had searched upstairs, but hadn't spotted the hidden attic, and had drawn the conclusion that the girls were being held elsewhere. While Rose and Dimitri were stuck in the standoff with three of the kidnappers, the other two dhampirs had questioned the fourth kidnapper to try to find out where the girls were being held, but he had refused to say. Finally, the three kidnappers in the standoff had run out of bullets, and one of them had lobbed a large burning piece of wood from the fire right at Dimitri. Naturally, Dimitri had dodged the wood, but there was no way to prevent the fire that began to spread. After a tense shouting match, during which Rose dragged two of the kidnappers outside to safety, the last thug still inside had finally told Dimitri where the girls were. Dimitri had run upstairs immediately, but by then the fire had spread to the point that the second floor was completely impassible. Heartbroken, he'd run outside, covered in burns. Rose had run to get Sonya, and that was when the group had learned that Adrian and I had ignored our orders and gone to the house, too.

"So we had a few minutes of uncertainty," Rose explained. "I was hoping against hope that you'd found the girls somehow and gotten out. That was the best case scenario, for sure."

"And we had," I said, faintly. I was exhausted. "So what now? Can we go home?"

"Almost," Rose said. "We were just discussing what to do with our four 'friends' from the house."

"The bad men," Violet whispered, and everyone turned to look at her. She covered her mouth with her hand and clutched my arm tightly.

"Yes, sweetheart, the bad men," I said. "Don't worry. They can't get you now."

"Hey," Sonya said gently. "Do you girls want to come over here for a few minutes while the grown-ups talk? I can show you some neat tricks."

"Magic tricks?" Amy asked.

"Yes, actually," Sonya said, and smiled.

Both girls looked at me, clearly hesitant to trust a stranger. I smiled warmly. "Sonya's my good friend," I said – a bit of an exaggeration to be sure, but I wanted them to trust her. "She's like Adrian. She knows lots of neat tricks."

"Come on," Sonya said. "It's boring over here, talking about this stuff. It'd be much more fun to play over there." She pointed out an old wrought iron bench near a puddle about fifteen meters from where we stood. I gave the girls my permission to go, and they went with Sonya. They didn't take her hands and drag her around as they had with Adrian, but they seemed comfortable with her, and I felt relieved, knowing that they wouldn't have to listen to the next conversation.

Once the girls were safely distracted, the adults were able to discuss the fates of the four kidnappers. All four kidnappers had already been questioned and had given more or less the same answers as Chicken Pockets had. They all named the same man as their employer, one "Fred Davis." The name was obviously fake, but that didn't really matter. Their description of his appearance, personality, and behavior was enough to make it obvious. The only thing I didn't understand was _why _he'd done it, and that was something these guys didn't know, either.

In any case, the kidnappers were pretty useless to us at this point. We briefly considered handing them over to the authorities, but that was usually the job of alchemists, so it was out of the question. We began to discuss various options for what we could do with four pre-owned thugs, but after a few minutes of conversation on the topic, I realized that I didn't much care what happened to them. Adrian caught my eye and gestured with his head, a "let's go gesture," and the two of us slipped away from the group of dhampirs, confident that they would figure out a plan without us.

We glanced over at the girls, but they were happily watching Sonya using her water magic to make small shapes with the water. So, wanting a little privacy, we walked over to a boulder a few dozen meters away, out of easy earshot. We sat down together, and Adrian put his arm around me. For a few moments we were quiet, just watching Sonya playing with the girls. Then Adrian spoke. "She and Mikhail have been having trouble getting pregnant. They love kids, so it's been hard on them."

"I've heard that Moroi have trouble sometimes," I said. "Didn't seem to affect _you_, though."

Adrian smiled wryly. "I think Amy had a plan, somehow," he said. Then he paused for a long moment. "It's weird, you know?" he said finally, in a strained voice. "Two months ago, I didn't know she existed, but now if... if um, tonight had been different..." He gulped loudly and went on. "If she were gone, I don't know what I would do. Like, I would lose my mind. It's weird how quickly you can go from not knowing someone exists to loving them completely."

"I know," I whispered. "Believe me, I know. It's what happened to me the moment I sensed I was pregnant, both times." I put my head on his shoulder. "Thank you for helping me save them, Adrian."

"You saved us all from the fire with your mattress idea," he answered. "I should be thanking you."

"You found the girls," I said. "They really _would_ have been in that attic when the fire hit..." Tears swam in my eyes as I thought about that possibility.

"You made the compound that unlocked the attic door," he said.

"You applied the compound to the lock."

"You don't get it, though," Adrian said. "You did such a great job. You saved everyone I love best on this earth from a fire." He paused, shaking his head. "And that includes you. If I had lost you..."

"You didn't," I said. "You still have me."

"Do I?" Adrian asked. "Do I really have you?"

In response, I kissed him. I meant it to be a soft, quick kiss, since we were within view of everyone else there, including the girls. But Adrian pulled me to him and we half crawled, half fell behind the boulder. He crushed my mouth with his, and I dug my fingers into his back, almost surprised at how quickly the passion rose in me at his touch. Though it lasted only a minute or two, the kiss told more than an hour's conversation could have. We kissed each other about our love, our fear, our joy, and our relief. Then Adrian just held me close to him for a long moment, and we stood up and sat back down on the boulder, hoping that no one had noticed our brief absence. It didn't seem that anyone had, thankfully.

I was glad that Adrian and I had had a chance to reconnect, but I was already starting to miss my daughters, so we crossed the damp lawn to sit down with them on the bench. The girls gushed about Sonya's magic tricks, and we chatted for a minute or two. Then Mikhail jogged over to us, explaining that Rose wanted to talk to me.

"And _I_ want to talk to _you_," he added to his wife, and gently pulled her to her feet. She giggled like a teenager and let him lead her a short distance away, where, to my surprise, they began kissing. I smiled, realizing that intense situations seemed to bring that out in people. The girls looked over at the kissing couple, and Amy made a disgusted face, but Violet sighed happily. She always had been a romantic.

"Ok, I better go see what Rose wants," I said, standing up.

"Since no one wants to talk to _me_," Adrian said to the girls, "I hope you two will keep me company."

"Of course, Adrian!" Amy said. "You're the funnest one anyway."

"Well, thank you, A-mazing!" he said, ruffling her hair.

"Will you tell us a story?" I heard Violet ask as I began walking away.

Rose was waiting for me by a big pine tree, tapping her foot slightly with impatience. "So," I asked her, once I'd reached her. "Have you guys come up with a plan?"

"Oh, sure," she said. "Dimitri scared the crap out of the guys and made them promise to be good from now on. Now we're going to leave them by the side of the road in the middle of nowhere." She grinned viciously.

"So what will happen to them?" I asked.

She shrugged. "Don't really care," she said. "They'll walk until they get somewhere, I guess. We gave them each a few dollars in coins so they can make a call if they find an old pay phone that still works. But Dimitri made it pretty clear that if any of them get so much as a parking ticket in the future, he would make them wish that they'd died in the fire." She grinned again.

"So you let your husband do the threatening nowadays?" I asked, unable to resist teasing her.

She shrugged again. "He's more intimidating," she said, matter-of-factly. "So what about you?" she asked. "Have you come up with a plan?"

"A plan?"

"Yeah, where are you going now? Hotel, or...?"

"We'll go back to my house," I said. "I want the girls to be able to sleep in their own beds tonight."

Rose nodded. "Will it be... you know, safe?" she asked.

"It's ok," I said. "We'll have the place to ourselves since Rick is still out of town. And you know, if you want to, you guys can crash at my place – we have a guest room, and a bunch of couches."

"That'd be cool," Rose said. Then she added, in one of the gentlest tones I'd ever heard her use, "But what will you do in the morning? Where will you go then, Sydney?"

"In the morning, we'll pack up our stuff, and... um..." I swallowed hard. "And then 'Sydney's life, Part Three' will begin."

"You're going to go stay with Adrian, maybe?" Rose asked.

"I think so," I said.

"You know," Rose said. "If you don't want to stay with him for some reason, like, if it's too strange to just move in right away, you can stay with me and Dimitri for a week or two, until you find a place. You and the girls would have to share one room, but we wouldn't mind. And we have two little boys about Violet and Amy's age. Maybe they'd get to be friends..."

"Thanks," I said, touched. "That's very generous of you. And I would really like for my girls to get to know Cole and Zach. If nothing else, Amy should really meet some other dhampirs her own age. But I can't take you up on that offer. I think... I think Adrian's place is where we want to go."

Rose looked over at Adrian, who was talking animatedly with the girls. In the quiet of the night, I could hear him talking, but couldn't make out the words. "He's telling them a story," Rose said, as if reading my mind. "It's about two princesses who go riding around the world on a turtle, or something." She smiled, then looked down at her hands. "It's weird," she said. "I never thought that Adrian would make a good father. I mean, he's a great guy, but I never thought of him as husband or father material. But... obviously, he is. If it's with you, anyway." She still didn't look up at me. She was rubbing the palm of her hand with her thumb, trying to get off a streak of sticky looking dirt.

And suddenly, I understood completely the real source of Rose's discomfort with my relationship with Adrian, and what had made her so standoffish when we'd first seen each other again. It wasn't just the Moroi-human thing. It wasn't just her belief that young dhampirs should be brought up with other dhampirs. It was those things too, of course, but under all of it was good old-fashioned jealousy. Even though Rose didn't really want Adrian for herself, it still hurt her, just a little, to see him with someone else – the way that, deep down, it sort of hurt me to think that Rick was cheating, despite everything else I knew about how awful he was. Nothing about her feelings, or mine, made any logical sense. But it was human nature – or dhampir nature, or whatever – to feel illogical feelings sometimes.

Of course, I couldn't say that to her. Even back in my blunter days of youth, I would have known better than to say, "Sorry I accidentally stole your ex-boyfriend and made him love me more than he ever loved you." So I just said, "Adrian surprises everyone, sooner or later," and left it at that.

Rose smiled, and brought her eyes up to my face. "So," she said. "For right now, the plan is, we'll go to your house, then. And yeah, I think we'd all like to crash with you tonight. It'll be a little slumber party! Except maybe Sonya and Mikhail, who will want to get a hotel room. I think Sonya is ovulating or something." She made a face. "Isn't it the grossest thing to think about your friends having sex?"

"It kind of is, yeah," I said.

"Ok, anyway, Dimitri and the boys can take care of the kidnappers," Rose said. "They can meet us at your place when they're done, or after they drop Mikhail and Sonya off at a hotel, anyway."

"Sounds good," I said. Already I was planning where I'd put everyone, and making a mental note to change the sheets in my bedroom so that Adrian could stay in my bed.

"I'll go get Dimitri up to speed," Rose said. "And then we can hit the road so your girls can get some sleep." She smiled brightly and turned on her heel, and I went back over to the bench, hoping to catch the tail end of Adrian's story.

Unfortunately, I arrived just in time to hear him say, "... happily ever after, amen." Both girls applauded happily.

"You missed it, Mommy," Violet said. "Adrian told us the best story."

Adrian smiled and flashed me a look that clearly said, _I have no idea what I'm doing. _

"Yes, it was the best story ever," Amy agreed. "Tell it again so Mom can hear it!"

"I'll have to hear it later," I said. "Right now, it's time to go home!"

The girls jumped up from the bench and cheered at the news. We set off in the direction of the car, and Rose soon joined us. Adrian walked on one side of me, and Violet on the other, both of them holding one of my hands. I let Violet hold the flashlight, a responsibility that she took seriously. Amy, meanwhile, began walking a short distance ahead of us with Rose, asking her tons of questions. Was Rose a police officer? Should Amy be a police officer? Because she was thinking of being one someday. Was Rose married to the tall tall man? Because he was _so_ tall. Would Rose let Amy braid her hair sometime? Rose bore all of these questions with amusement, and as we reached the car, commented, "You know, Amy, I think you should meet my son Cole. He'd give you a run for your money."

"No offense, but boys are yucky," Amy said. Rose let out a laugh and unlocked the car with the key fob.

Adrian and I got into the back seat of the car with the girls. Violet sat in my lap, and Amy sat in the middle, between me and Adrian. Rose got into the driver's seat, muttering that she felt like a chauffeur. As Rose put the car into drive, I opened up the duffel bag I'd brought with me and gave each girl her favorite stuffed animal, which they hugged happily. Then I passed out some granola bars to everyone, even Rose, and we all munched happily for a few minutes.

"So," I said, once we had settled down. "Do you think you can talk about what happened, girls? Or do you want to wait for morning?"

"I can tell you what happened," Amy said. "I don't mind." When I nodded for her to continue, she said, "Well, at school, right? There was a man with a cute puppy. He said hi, and he asked, did me and Violet want to see the other puppies? I wanted to go look 'cause I love puppies, and Violet did too, so we went."

"He lured you with puppies?" Rose said, incredulously. "We were wayyyyy too nice to those guys. We should have left them in the middle of Death Valley."

"And what happened then?" I asked, ignoring Rose's comment.

"Um, then there was this really funny smell in my nose and I fell asleep."

"I don't remember a smell," said Violet. "I just remember the puppies, and then... being _there_." She wrinkled her nose and gestured behind us.

_More chloroform,_ I thought. These guys sure loved the stuff.

"When I woke up, Vy-Vy was still sleeping," Amy said. "She wouldn't wake up at first and I was a little scared for her. But she was ok, just sleeping. And I was scared anyway but glad she was with me. Once she woke up I felt better. I figured it was an adventure, and I would rescue us, you know? Because it'd be like _really_ being a special service agent, so we were playing that Violet was the president and I was her special service agent..."

"That sounds like a good idea," I said. "Did it make you feel better to do that?"

"A little. But it was boring with nothing to do. And it wasn't any fun and we were bored and hungry."

"I'm still hungry," Violet said, plaintively. I handed her another granola bar from the bag.

"And I wanted to rescue Violet so we tried to bust the door, like I told you, but it hurt Violet and her arm got broke, and she cried..."

"I'm sorry," Violet said. "I didn't mean to cry. But it hurt."

"It's ok, Vy-Vy," Amy said. "It's my fault for the idea. I was trying to help."

"You both were doing great," I said. "I'm so proud of both of you."

"Me too," Adrian said. "I think if my arm had been broken they would have heard me all the way in California."

The girls giggled at this comment, and then Amy went on with her story. "Well, anyway, the man came up to tell us to be quiet," she said. "And I told him he was mean and he was going to go to hell for being mean to us. But that just made the man angry and he put that cloth thing in my face and I fell asleep again."

"It was scary," Violet said, in a small voice. "She wouldn't wake up for a while and I was all alone, sort of. Then the man came back with the phone, and I could at least talk to you. And later on Amy woke up, but then they made us go to sleep again. And then you and Mister Adrian were there."

"What about the hoodies?" I asked, a question which surprised everyone in the car. "Where did you get that hoody, Vy?"

"It was in the room," Violet said. "There were two. But one was too small for either of us. This one fit me, so I put it on, because I was cold."

That was pretty much what I'd thought, but this last bit of confirming evidence still hurt to take in. "Are you ok?" Adrian murmured to me.

"It's just more of the same," I said. "I'm fine. I have my girls. I have you. I can handle... well, you-know-who."

"Who are you talking about, Voldemort?" Amy said, and giggled.

"Almost," Adrian said.

"A different Slytherin," I said, and my voice came out sounding strange, as if I'd been shouting at the top of my lungs for ten years straight.


	16. Bright Blue Shocks

_Argh. I originally posted an older version of this. This is the version I meant to put up. It has a few extra lines of dialog halfway through, around the part where Sydney says "Bull." _

**Chapter 16: Bright Blue Shocks**

It was a long drive back home, and as the excitement of our daring escape started to wear off, the girls' moods started to darken. Violet began asking questions that showed her anxiety – she wanted to know who the kidnappers were, if they'd be coming back, and if I was angry at her for talking to strangers. I soothed her as best I could, telling her that I wasn't sure why the kidnappers had taken her and Amy (which was true enough), that I was going to protect her from now on, and that of course, I wasn't mad at all.

Amy had a completely different set of questions that were much more difficult to answer. She wondered why Sonya and Adrian could do magic, while most people couldn't. She also wanted to know why she and Adrian could see and hear so well, when Violet and I could not. Adrian jumped in to say that everyone was different, and that even in a family, not everyone was the same. "You should see Rose's father," he said, laughing. "He's nothing like her."

"You can say that again," Rose said, from the front seat. "Thank God I'm not like my old man! And don't worry about it, Amy. Everyone's different."

"But..." Amy said, frowning. "I wish _I_ could do magic."

"You do," I said. "You make me happy every day."

She rolled her eyes. "Mom, that's so cheesy," she said, but I caught her smiling.

"Oh," Adrian said. "Speaking of being happy, I have presents for you two girls!"

"Really?" Amy said. "Ooooh!"

"Ooooh!" repeated Violet, in exactly the same tone. I waited for Amy to get annoyed – she often got annoyed at Violet's hero-worship – but this time she just smiled and squeezed her little sister's hand.

Adrian, meanwhile, had pulled out two small black velvet boxes from his coat pocket. He handed one to Amy and one to Violet, and each girl opened her gift eagerly. Inside the boxes were silver ID bracelets with their names engraved in pretty script letters. The girls were thrilled to get such grown-up presents, and Adrian put Amy's on her wrist while I did the same for Violet.

The presents seemed to distract them from their questions, and for some reason, seemed to calm them down. Ten or fifteen minutes after they'd received their gifts, they had both drifted off into sleep. I was glad to see them sleeping, since it was well past their bedtimes, and soon, watching their calm, sleeping faces, I found my own eyes growing heavy. The next thing I knew, Rose was saying, "Wake up, Sydney."

It took a little effort for me to open my eyes. When I did, I saw that we were pulling into my driveway – or rather, I corrected myself, the driveway of the house where I'd been living for the past few years. Violet was still conked out in my arms, and Amy was also out cold, her head resting on Adrian's shoulder. Adrian opened his eyes slowly, blinked them a few times uncomfortably, then gave me a hesitant smile. We gently woke the girls up, and though they were cranky, they were glad to be "home."

"I'm huuuuungry," Violet whined.

"I'm hungry, too," Amy said.

"I'm hungry three," Adrian said. "How about you, Sydney? Rose?"

"I'm hungry four," Rose said, as she turned off the ignition. "Let's go inside and have a snack and then go to bed."

"It's a plan," I said.

"Are you hungry five?" Violet asked me, and giggled.

"You bet," I said, and tickled her a little. Then we all climbed out of the car and stumbled up the front walk to the house.

We went inside and made our way into the cozy kitchen to make some snacks, turning on some lights as we went since the house was completely dark. I insisted that our guests, Rose and Adrian, sit down at the table, while I started getting out some bread, meat, cheese, and fixings for sandwiches. The girls were helping me get everything to the table when Adrian stood up all of a sudden and said, "Why don't we all go out to eat instead? Won't that be really fun, Sydney? Rose?"

I saw the look of confusion on Rose's face, but she jumped to attention. "Good plan, Adrian!" she said. "I love all-night diners. I saw a Denny's about ten minutes away..."

"Let's go _right now_, ok, Sydney?" Adrian said, a muted urgency to his voice.

"Good idea," I said, though I had no idea what was going on. "Come on, girls. Let's go."

"I'm tired," Violet said. She had just placed a jar of mustard on the table. "I don't want to go anywhere."

"Me either," Amy said. She was right by me, about to pick up some peppers from the fridge. "I don't like Denny's."

In point of fact, Amy loved Denny's, but she was tired and feeling contrary. I took her hand, and Adrian took Violet's, and we both turned towards the hallway. The girls were protesting loudly, but I trusted that Adrian had a reason for all this, and I wasn't going to question it.

However, we didn't make it far before a voice behind us stopped us in our tracks.

"Where are you going at this time of night, honey?" Rick asked.

"We were going out for a late dinner," I replied, as calmly as I could. I turned around to see him coming in from the living room. "What were you doing sitting in the dark?"

"I was waiting for you," he said. "I was worried sick about you and the girls. Hi, girls." He smiled that smile of his, the one that never went near his eyes. I looked over at Adrian and saw a look of fear and self-reproach. He must have sensed Rick's aura and known that there was someone else in the house – someone whose aura was full of anger and cruelty.

"Hi, Dad," the girls said, in response to Rick's greeting. Violet began nervously adjusting her hair, and Amy took tighter hold of my hand.

"Adrian," I said, in the most level voice I could manage. "Will you please take the girls out to the car?"

"Of course," he said. "If Rose will stay with you." He looked at Rose, and a whole conversation passed between them in a flash.

"I'll be right here with her," Rose said, and took a step towards me.

"Why are you home so soon?" I asked Rick. "Business didn't pan out as intended?" I gently tugged Amy around to my other side, so that she'd be closer to the door.

"I already told you, I was worried about you," Rick said. "I had intuition. People talk about women's intuition, but men have intuition, too. I sensed something was wrong and I came back home."

"Bull," I said, then bit my tongue. I didn't want the girls to know what I had figured out. I wanted them shielded from this information for as long as possible. Preferably, for as long as they lived.

"Language, language," Rick said. "Where are your manners, Sydney? Aren't you going to introduce me to these... friends of yours?" He peered at Adrian, then recoiled visibly. "What is _he_?" Rick asked, then sneered. "He isn't even human. You let one of those creatures into our house? Do I even dare to ask what _she_ is?" He jerked his head towards Rose, who balled her hands into fists in response.

Amy squeezed my hand even tighter, so hard that it almost hurt. I whispered, "Shhh. Don't worry."

Violet took a few shaky steps forward so that she was standing in between Adrian and Rick. "D-d-don't say mean things about Adrian, Daddy," she said, in the loudest voice she could manage. "He's our f-f-friend."

"I'm ok, Violet," Adrian said, trying to coax her back to his side of the room. "Don't worry about me. Come here, though, and let's go to the car."

"You're not taking either of my daughters anywhere," Rick said, coldly, stepping a little closer to Violet, who took a step back away from him.

"Adrian saved us from the fire," Amy said loudly, dropping my hand and moving towards the center of the room. "Rose helped us too. They're nice. Don't be mean, Dad."

Rather than respond to the fact that his daughters had been in a fire, Rick looked back and forth from Amy to Adrian, and then stared at me with a disgusted look on his face. "What is going on here?" he asked. "Why are there two creatures in the kitchen I paid for with the sweat of my brow? And how do you know them?"

"Adrian, take the girls," I said, urgently. "Girls, go with Adrian. _Now_."

"Maybe I should be asking how well you know _him_," Rick continued, gesturing to Adrian. "Do you know him Biblically, Sydney?"

"Don't be crude," I said, through gritted teeth. Rose took a step forward, but I shook my head urgently. I didn't want my daughters seeing Rick beaten up, no matter what his crimes might be. Rose nodded, understanding my gesture.

"Come on, A-mazing," Adrian said to Amy, who was on the other side of the room from him, closer to me. "You too, Miss Purple," he added, holding his hands out to Violet, who was only a few steps away from him.

"Violet, don't you dare go near that dangerous creature," Rick said. "Come over to me. Come to Daddy."

But Violet stood still, confused. I could imagine her thoughts – she must have been wondering why Rick was calling Adrian "dangerous," when in her own experience, Adrian had been nothing but kind and generous. "Um..." she said, looking over at me for an answer.

"Go with Mr. Adrian, sweetheart," I said.

Rick shot me a look of pure hatred, then looked at Adrian again for a long moment before glancing at Amy, then back over to me, his eyes growing wider.

"I should have known," he said, in a very, very, quiet voice. "That creature is nothing like a child of mine would be. Am I right, Sydney? That... that... thing..." – and he gestured to Amy – "is no daughter of mine." Amy covered her mouth in astonishment, and Adrian put his hand to his throat.

Rick had noticed the resemblance between Amy and Adrian. Of course he had. Even strangers could see it – the eyes were exactly the same. He had been able to fool himself that she looked like him when she was first born, but seeing her so near Adrian revealed the truth. I tried to formulate an appropriate response, keeping in mind the young ears in the room. I couldn't bring myself to outright lie, even though that's what I'd been doing for ten years. But the outrage still sang in me, and I said, "Don't you _dare_ say something so cruel. Look at her. She's the same child you've known, her whole life."

"She's not a _child_!" he spat. "She's not even _human_!" He faced Amy, hate and anger radiating from his features. "I cast thee out! Unclean creature!"

"What?" Amy whispered, confused and deeply hurt. "Daddy, what do you mean?" She bent over a little, shoulders hunched, like someone who'd just been punched in the stomach. I tried to reach for her, wanting to put my arms around her in comfort, but she squirmed away.

"Get this through your evil brain – I'm not your father!" Rick said. He turned to Adrian. "You can have your creature if you want her," he said. "It doesn't matter. But no way are you taking Violet."

"Daddy, why are you being so mean?" Violet asked. She had been watching this entire scene with a horrified look on her face, and now, confused and upset, she was beginning to cry.

Amy, for her part, wasn't crying, but her eyes were shining and her cheeks were flushed. "You _never_ liked me," she said. "I _knew_ it."

"Come here, Amy, sweetheart," Adrian said, desperately. "Come on, Violet. Let's all go out to the car and I'll tell you the story again."

"Not a chance," Rick said, and lunged for Adrian.

Then a lot of things happened at once. Amy took a step towards Rick, and I instinctively reached out for her, holding her back. Rose, meanwhile, tried to reach for Rick to restrain him, but before she could, Violet kicked him in the shins, shouting, "No, Daddy, _no_!" Rick tried to shove the little girl aside, but when he grabbed her, a bright blue light crackled out of her body and engulfed Rick's hands. He let out a shriek of pain and pulled away from her. At the same time, Violet fell to the ground, more out of fear than as the result of anything that Rick had done. Rose, who had been running over, picked Violet up in her arms and moved her away from Rick, while Violet, distraught and frightened, began to bawl louder than ever. Amy began to struggle in my grasp, but I held her tighter than ever.

"What the hell is this?" Rick shouted, seething in pain and anger. He held his hands out in front of him as if to show us something, but they looked the same as they had before the strange blue light had attacked him. "Is this your magic, creature?" he demanded, looking at Adrian.

"Yes," Adrian said, smiling widely. "I'm proud to say it is. So come for me, then. Try coming for someone your own size." Again, Rick moved to hit Adrian, and this time, Amy ducked out of my grasp and ran to help Adrian, moving faster than I could possibly hope to keep up with. She flew at Rick in a leap that she must have learned in gymnastics class. She managed to land a decent kick to Rick's side, but then he whirled around and smacked her hard in the face. The same blue light which before had come from Violet now came from Amy, crackling like thunder in the small room, and Rick fell over on the ground, unconscious.

For a moment, all of us stood motionless, most of us staring down at the man on the ground as the blue shocks faded away. I wasn't sure where the lightening had come from, but I had an idea that it had something to do with Adrian, and I resolved to worry about it later. Amy slowly lifted one hand to her face, and pressed it against her cheek, where Rick had slapped her. Rose began rocking Violet back and forth in her arms, trying to soothe her. Then Adrian got to his knees to fold Amy into his arms. "Are you ok?" he asked her, pulling her close to him. I wavered, unable to choose which child needed me more.

"I'm fine," Amy said, in a stunned sort of way. She stood woodenly in Adrian's arms, barely even blinking.

"_Mommy_!" Violet cried, spurring me into movement. I took her from Rose and cuddled her close to me. Rose and I exchanged glances, and then the dhampir woman stepped over to the unconscious body of Rick and dragged him effortlessly from the kitchen into the living room. With him gone from the room, Adrian and I would at least have a chance to calm down the kids.

"It's ok, baby," I whispered to Violet, rocking her a little. "It's ok. He won't hurt you again." I sat down with her on the floor as she continued to sob. "Amy, sweetheart," I called, over Violet's shoulder. "Are you ok? Honey, talk to me."

"What did he mean?" Amy asked, in a stunned whisper. Her eyes were bright with tears, and she was still motionless and rigid. "He said he's not my father. He said I was unclean. Does unclean mean the same thing as dirty? Because I... I take a shower every day. I really do." One tear fell from her eyes.

"He's an idiot," Adrian said, wiping the tear away. "Don't worry about what he said. It's his problem, not yours."

"He said he's not my father," Amy repeated, in that same oddly emotionless tone. "Why did he say that?" A few more tears rolled down her cheeks.

For a split second, I thought of just telling her the truth, but I felt certain that right now wasn't the time. She had enough on her plate, emotionally. "It doesn't matter, honey," I said. "Don't worry about it. You're still my baby. You'll always be my baby."

"Why did Daddy say that?" she said, again. "I don't..." And then her shoulders shook as she began to cry in earnest.

Adrian forced her to look him in the face. "I told you, Amy," he said. "He's an idiot. He has... farts for brains. Instead of brains, he just has farts." Amy didn't smile, but she nodded and wiped her face with her sleeve, which was really Adrian's sleeve, since she was still wearing his sweater. "So when he tries to think, he just thinks stinky mean thoughts," Adrian said. "That must be what's wrong with him."

Amy smiled this time, a thin little smile, then sniffed again.

"And really, Amy..." he said, stroking the hair back from her tear-sticky face. "I have to say, you're a great kid. Really great. You're a little super-hero, for God's sake. You're smart and funny and kind and brave and generous, not to mention really beautiful. And that was some kick you landed on him, just to protect me! Thanks for that, by the way." She nodded a little, and Adrian went on. "Anyone would be proud to be your dad. If I..." He paused and cleared his throat. "If I were your dad, I would be super proud of you. I would want to go around telling every stranger I met about you, because I'd be so proud of you."

Amy smiled faintly and nodded, then wiped her eyes again. "Thanks, Adrian," she whispered, and then closed her eyes and leaned against him. I watched her body shake with noiseless sobs.

Violet, meanwhile, was beyond hearing any of this. She was letting out gasping, loud, almost choking sobs, the kind that verge on hysterics. For a few moments, Adrian and I just let the girls cry, because there was almost no point in trying to stem their tears. My mind ran through options and finally settled on the old stand-by: hot cocoa.

"Hey, Violet, Amy," I said. "I'm going to make some hot cocoa for myself. Do you want some, too?"

"I w-w-want some c-cocoa," Violet said, immediately.

"Then you'll have some," I said. "Amy?"

"I can show Adrian where we keep it," she said, in a tear-streaked voice. "It's on a tall shelf," she added, to Adrian.

"I'm good at getting things down from tall shelves," Adrian said. "It's one of the many, many things I'm good at." Amy showed him where we kept the cocoa, hidden behind the spices, and he got it down for her. Then Amy insisted on making us the cocoa, and soon she was measuring the powder into four mugs. She seemed to relax a little as she performed the familiar ritual, and Violet turned to watch her sister as the older girl poured and stirred. Slowly, Violet's sobs quieted down.

With Adrian's help, Amy brought the four mugs to the table, which was still littered with the sandwich fixings from before. Violet got up from the floor to sit in her chair, and soon found that she wasn't able to sob and sip cocoa at the same time. She wisely chose to stop the sobbing.

I gave us all a few minutes to drink the cocoa, and then when both girls seemed to have settled down enough, I cleared my throat. "Um," I said, hoping I'd figure out what else I'd say as I went along. "Amy, Violet, first, I want to say that I love you both very much. And I'm proud of you for being so brave today, both back at the old house and, um, just now, with... him."

"Me too," Adrian said. "You were both ready to protect me, and I feel so flattered and good that two nice girls like you would worry about someone like me."

Both girls smiled at the compliments they were getting as they continued to sip at their cocoa. I knew they were waiting for an explanation that would somehow make all of this make sense, and I just didn't have that explanation. I paused, then went on. "Also, you have to know, that, um, he acted unacceptably. He was just _wrong_. It's not ok for someone to hit you like he did. And it's also not ok to say mean things to people like that. People shouldn't do that to anyone, especially to people they love. It was all his fault, not yours. Ok? You know that, right?"

They both nodded their heads uncertainly. Violet took a slice of cheese from a nearby plate and began taking tiny bites of it.

"And um," I continued. "I've decided that we're going to go away from him. Because he's too mean, and you girls should be around nice people only."

"So should you, Sydney," Adrian said, gently, taking my hand. "You deserve nice people, too."

I nodded. "We all deserve nice people," I said. "So we're going to go away."

"Where are we going?" Amy asked. Then she pulled a piece of bologna from a plate and shoved the entire thing in her mouth, almost swallowing it whole.

"Washington DC," Adrian said. "At least, that's where we're going tonight. We can have a nice little vacation there. I have a nice hotel room reserved for us."

"And after that?" Amy asked. Violet nodded vigorously to show that she wanted to know the same thing. Her cheese slice had already mysteriously disappeared, and she took another one.

"Then, if you want, you can come stay with me," Adrian said. "I mean, if you want to. Or you can stay at the hotel for a while. Or maybe you and your mom can get your own place to live. Whatever you want."

"I want to stay with you at your house, Mr. Adrian," Violet whispered. "Is it far away?"

"Do you have kids?" Amy asked. "Are they our age?"

"You two are the closest thing I have to kids," Adrian said, which I thought was a particularly masterful dodge of the question. "And I live in Philadelphia, which is kind of far away, but not that far if you go in an airplane. Have you ever heard of Philadelphia?"

"It's where Benjamin Franklin is from," Violet whispered. "I read about it in _Highlights_."

"Right," Adrian said. "We can go see his house, if you want to."

"I want to," Violet whispered, and promptly began to cry again. "I want to go riiiiiight noooooooow."

"In a day or two, baby," I said, taking her hand. "It's not open now."

"I know th-th-that," Violet sobbed. "B-b-but I want to go n-n-now."

Amy got out of her chair and went around the table to hug Violet. "Hey, Vy-Vy," she said. "Don't cry, ok?" Then the older girl looked up at me as Violet continued to cry, and said, in a stage whisper, "I think she's tired and needs to go to B-E-D."

Amy's imitation of a typical "Mommy" was so spot on I had to work hard to keep from smiling at it. Amy didn't like feeling laughed at. "You're probably right," I said.

"I d-d-d-don't wuh-wuh-wanna," Violet said. "I'm too ti-i-i-i-red for bed."

She wasn't making much sense, and she seemed to know that, too. Poor Violet, I thought, stroking her hair. She had only just turned seven years old, and in the last twelve hours she'd been kidnapped and chloroformed, suffered through a broken arm, had to jump out of a burning building, and had been involved in a violent confrontation with her father. And it was hours past her bedtime, to boot. I looked at Adrian desperately. "Can you help her?" I asked him, in a low tone.

"Of course," he answered. He had been sitting at the other end of the long table, but now he settled in the chair that Violet had been sitting in, which was just to my left. He took Violet from me and settled her in his lap. "Violet, sweetheart?"

"I-I-I'm M-miss Puuuurple," she sobbed.

"Miss Purple," he corrected. "I knew that. So what's wrong, Miss Purple?"

"I'm ti-i-i-i-i-red," she sobbed. "But I'm too sad to sleeeep."

"Do you wish you _could_ sleep?" he asked.

"Y-y-es..."

"Let me help you fall asleep then," he said. "Look at me."

She looked up at him, and he wiped away her tears gently. "Go to sleep, sweetheart," he murmured, and she fell limp in his arms almost immediately.

Amy let out a little yelp of surprise, but after a moment, she just leaned forward to give Violet a kiss on the cheek. Then she looked from Adrian to me, clear eyed.

"Don't make _me_ fall asleep," she said.

"I won't," Adrian said. "I wouldn't do that to you. Violet _wanted_ to go to sleep."

Amy nodded. "Right," she said. She paused to eat an entire slice of cheese in one gulp, then glanced over towards the living room. "Are we really going to go away from... him?"

"Really," I said. "So we don't have to be around... him anymore."

"Ok," she said, as tears flooded her eyes. "I never liked him. I _never_ did. I _hate_ him."

"I know," I said. "I think that's ok."

"I don't care if it's ok or not," she said. "I hate him anyway, even if it's not ok. I'll always, always hate him."

"I don't care about _him _at all_,_" I said. "I only care about you and Violet. You two are my most important people."

She smiled faintly. "Good," she said. I put my arms around her and she hugged me tightly, as she so rarely did these days. Then she turned to Adrian, who still held a sleeping Violet in his arms, and gave him a hug too. "I'm glad you're here, Adrian," Amy said, into his shoulder. "You've been so nice to me and my mom and my sister."

"It's easy to be nice to you three," Adrian said, smiling incredulously. "You're all so cool."

Amy stared at him for a moment, stroking her lip in thought. "Did you make the lightening?" she asked.

Adrian considered the question, then nodded. "Sort of," he said. "I put a magic spell on those bracelets I got for you and your sister. They sense negative intentions and act to protect whoever is wearing them." I suddenly remembered the time that Rick had gotten a bad shock when he'd been holding my wrist a little too tightly, and realized that Adrian must have put the spell on _my_ bracelet, too. The sneak.

Amy seemed to accept this explanation without too much effort, then paused, her head turned to one side. "Who _are_ you?" she asked, and poked him in the forehead with one finger. "Like, I know your _name_, but who _are_ you?"

Adrian opened his mouth to answer, but the sound of a baby laughing somewhere cut him off. Amy and I looked around us, confused, for the baby, but Adrian calmly reached into his pocket and pulled out his cell phone. "Hi," he said, answering it. "No, not really... Rick's here. No, we're fine. But... yeah, exactly. See you soon." He hung up. "That was Eddie," he said. "He and Dimitri are a few minutes away."

"I like your ring tone," Amy said, figuring out the source of the baby laughing sound at pretty much the same time as I did. "It's cute."

"I like it too," Adrian said, with a smile. "I set it up myself."

I realized that he must have taken the baby laughing sound from one of Amy's baby videos, and I blinked away a few tears. Rick never even carried a picture of the girls in his wallet, and Adrian had made Amy's laugh his ring tone.

"To answer your question," Adrian said, and caught my eye. I shook my head gently. I knew that he wanted to tell her that he was her father, and I knew that right now probably seemed like the right time. But it wasn't. Naturally, Amy would be glad to know that she did have a father who loved her, but after everything she'd been through today, she was holding her emotions together with a string. The smallest extra thing might send her off the deep end, and her true parentage was no small thing. On top of that, now was not the time for her to learn that her mother had been lying to her, her whole life.

Adrian picked up on my gesture, and said, "My name is Adrian Ivashkov. I'm an artist. I live in Philadelphia, like I told you. I went to a high school called St. Vladamir's, which is in the middle of absolutely nowhere, and is no place for a wonderful girl like yourself. I... I was friends with your mom back when she was only 19 and living in Palm Springs. She taught me how to drive cars that have a manual transmission."

"You already knew how to do that," I said, but he ignored me.

"And we worked together on a few things, and she even saved my life a few times."

"You saved mine, too," I said.

"We were good friends," Adrian said. "And we still are. And... that's all I can think of. What else do you want to know about me?"

She paused. "Do you have any pets?" she asked finally, a dubious expression on her face. I knew she was unsatisfied with his explanation.

"Not yet," he said. "But if you and Violet come to live with me, we'll have to get a pet. Maybe a turtle."

She smiled. "That would be nice," she said. Then she sat down in my lap, something she hadn't done in a very long time.

Just then, Rose peeked her head in the kitchen. "Sydney?" she said. "What do you want to do with... you-know-who?"

"Voldemort," Amy muttered, under her breath.

"Give us a minute," I said, answering Rose, then looked at Adrian. "Let's get Violet up to the playroom, ok? And Amy, will you sit with your sister, in case she wakes up? She'll be scared if she wakes up and she's alone, and I know that you're one of the only people she trusts."

Amy nodded, sitting up a little straighter. She liked being trusted with an important task. "I can sit with her," she said. "I guarded her when we were in the old house."

"I know you did," I said, as we all stood up. "You're a good big sister."

The playroom was a half-flight upstairs, and Adrian deftly carried Violet's limp little body up the stairs and put her down carefully on the ugly brown couch. Amy sat down next to her with a book, promising that she wouldn't leave her side for a minute. I brought her a bologna and cheese sandwich and another cup of cocoa and told her one more time how great she was, and then Adrian and I went back down to the kitchen.

"I'm going to make a few phone calls," Adrian said, sitting down at the table. "What's the address here, exactly?"

"Who are you calling?" I asked, as I grabbed a scrap of paper and jotted down the address.

"I'm going to get some movers over here," he said. "They can put all the stuff you want in boxes and bring it up to my place, or put some of it in storage, whatever you want. And um, I was thinking, maybe Rose could call the old man for us."

"Abe Mazour, you mean?" I asked, and he nodded. "What for?" I stood next to him, feeling too antsy to sit down.

"Well, he's a lawyer," Adrian said, turning his chair a little so that he was facing me. "Sort of, anyway. He can draw up contracts. And uh, you need a contract."

"A divorce contract," I said, picking up on his meaning.

"Yes," Adrian said. He put his hands on my waist and drew me a little nearer. "I mean, I'm assuming that's what you want. Right?"

I had wanted a divorce from Rick for almost as long as I'd been married to him, and the prospect of going through with it was like the prospect of removing a painful splinter. I knew that I would feel so much better once it was over with. "It's what I want," I said.

"Ok," Adrian said. "So ask Rose to call him. And then you can pack up a few things for you and the girls for our time in DC."

"I already have some stuff packed from before," I said. "I can go get the suitcases, maybe throw in a few more things."

"Perfect." He kissed my forehead. "Are you ok?"

"I think I will be," I said, and made myself smile. "Let me go get our things ready."

"Good plan," Adrian said. "And if I'm still on the phone when fuckface over there wakes up, be sure and come get me, because I have a few questions for him."

"I do too," I said, feeling my hands curl into fists. "Like, for starters, I want to know why he ordered his own daughters to be kidnapped."

"For _starters_," Adrian said, and the coldness in his voice made a chill run down my spine.

_A/N: I was working on this chapter for a bit and it started to get really long and also kind of all over the map, emotionally. So I decided to cut it in half to make it more manageable. The second half of this chapter is now going to be chapter 17, tentatively titled "Three Doorbell Rings and a Kiss." And the estimate of the total number of chapters continues to rise... Remember when I thought there'd be only 12? Ha ha ha ha ha..._


	17. Four Fathers

**Chapter 17: Four Fathers**

The doorbell rang a few minutes later, and Amy and I opened the door to find Dimitri and Eddie waiting on our doorstep. We all exchanged hellos, and Eddie ruffled Amy's hair affectionately. Then Dimitri asked, "Where is he?"

"He's in the living room, but he's unconscious," I said.

"He fell down on the floor when the lightening hit him," Amy said casually, smoothing her hair back down.

"Good," Dimitri said, nodding. "Show us where to go."

I told Amy to go back up to the playroom, then took Eddie and Dimitri through the kitchen – Adrian was still on the phone there, and he waved absentmindedly at the newcomers – and into the living room. Rose, it turned out, had tied the unconscious Rick to an armchair. Seeing someone tied up that way reminded me a little of my time spent as a captive of Strigoi, ages ago in Palm Springs, and I pushed the memory away. Rick was our captive now. Maybe he'd have nightmares about this day in the future, the way I had had nightmares for months after that awful day in Keith's apartment. I found myself hoping that he would. It'd serve him right.

Rose explained to the other dhampirs what had happened, and I added in a few more details that she didn't know about, including the fact that the lightening had been caused by Adrian's magic-infused bracelets. Once we were all up to speed, Eddie, restless as always, volunteered to check the house for any other intruders – though I was fairly certain there was no one else to worry about – and wandered off. Then Rose, Dimitri and I chatted for a few minutes about their successful disposal of the kidnappers in the middle of nowhere.

Once we'd all had a laugh, Dimitri turned to me, concern on his intense, handsome face. "Are your daughters doing well?" he asked. "This night must have been quite stressful."

"Violet's resting," I said. I sat down on a couch facing the armchair that my husband was bound to. "Amy's... Well, I'm not sure." I felt tears starting up in my eyes, and I blinked them away.

"Kids are resilient," Rose said. "They'll make it through this."

I nodded. "I just don't know how I'm going to explain to Amy why Rick said that he isn't her father. I mean, I know what I have to tell her, but... it's going to be tough."

"It'll be ok," Rose said, sitting down next to me. "I saw how she was with Adrian. She already adores him."

"But there's a difference between having a friend and having a father," I said.

She nodded. "It's weird to find out someone is your father, even someone you know," she said. "I knew Abe for a while before I knew he was my dad. But I dealt with it when I found out, and we're talking about _Abe Mazour _here_. _I mean, come on. If I can accept Zmey as my dad, and even get along with the guy at family gatherings, then these girls can accept Adrian."

"Just Amy," I corrected. "Adrian is Amy's dad, but not Violet's."

"Poor Violet," Rose said. "I almost feel like it's going to be harder for _her_. What kid doesn't secretly wish they had more glamorous parents? And then to find out that your sister is the daughter of a magic wielding billionaire, but you're not?" She shook her head.

I had never thought about that. Would Violet be hurt to find out that Adrian _wasn't_ her father? It actually seemed like a distinct possibility. "You might be right," I said. "As if this situation weren't difficult enough."

"It doesn't have to be difficult," Dimitri said. "Biology alone doesn't make a father."

"Definitely not," Rose said, gazing at Dimitri lovingly. "You're the only one I would want to be my children's father, biology or no biology."

"Roza," he said, looking back at her with the same intensity.

My inner teenager wanted to roll my eyes at their display of affection, but some other part of me liked seeing a couple that was still happy together, despite the ups and downs of ten years. But my inner teenager won out, and I coughed a little to get their attention back to the moment.

"Anyway, Sydney," Dimitri continued, after he tore his gaze away from his wife's face. "Our sons know that I'm not their father by blood. It's never been a problem. Your Violet may, in time, come to view Adrian as her true father."

"I hope so," I said, sighing. It wasn't as if Rick would be able to do the job going forward. "But one thing at a time. First, I have to deal with the um, current father. Which reminds me... Rose, do you think you could call _your_ father and ask him to draw up a contract for me?"

Rose glanced at her watch. "It's almost midnight here," she said. "So it'd be nine in California... yeah, I _think_ he'll be awake by now. Sure, I can call him. A divorce contract, right?"

"Right," I said.

Rose grinned. "He'll love that," she said. "He always liked you for whatever reason. I'll see if I can get him to do it right now." She pulled out her cell phone and headed for the kitchen to place the call.

Adrian came into the room just as Rose was leaving it, and they exchanged smiles. "Hey, party people," Adrian said. "Sydney, you'll be pleased to know that I got everything set up for the move, and a few other things set up too, while I was at it."

"Great," I said.

"So, uh, when are we going to wake up Goofus over there?" He gestured to Rick, who was drooling a little.

"Soon as Rose gets off the phone and Eddie comes back from casing the house," I said.

"_What_ about me?" Eddie asked, from down the hall, then strode back into the room. "The house is secure."

"Thanks, Castile," Dimitri said.

"Does anyone want a snack?" I asked. I felt like I was being a terrible host.

"I saw some brownies on the counter in the kitchen," Eddie said. "Are you saving those for something?"

"Don't eat those," I said, at the same time as Adrian said, "Not at all, Castile, have three or four."

"I think I'll pass," Eddie said, eyes narrowed.

"Good call," I said. The brownies Eddie had seen were the ones I'd made with the memory compound. This compound had an unfortunate side-effect of making people not only _remember_ the truth, but babble about it helplessly. Or maybe that wasn't such an unfortunate side-effect... "Wait a moment, guys," I said. "I'll be right back."

And I went to fetch my alchemist kit from under the sink in the downstairs bathroom.

* * *

I let Adrian have the honors of waking Rick up. Honestly, I didn't want to get close enough to my so-called husband to touch him. But Adrian enjoyed leaning over Rick's body and poking him in the ribs. "Hey, fuckface," Adrian said, cheerfully. "Rise and shine!"

It took quite a lot of poking to finally wake Rick up, but after a few minutes he opened his eyes.

"What the fuck?" he muttered. He looked around the room blearily. "Oh, crap. More of you freaks."

"Yep," Adrian said, still cheerful. "There are lots of us. See that nice looking gentleman over there?" He gestured to Eddie, then said, in a conspiratorial stage-whisper, "He's a dhampir. His father was a Moroi, like me. He looks pretty dangerous, don't you think?"

"And evil," Eddie chimed in. "Don't forget evil."

"Right, right," Adrian said. "Totally. And those two over there are a married dhampir couple. He's quite a tall fellow, don't you think? He's from Siberia."

"That's in Russia," Dimitri said, almost rolling the _R_. I was fairly certain he was playing up his accent, and I suppressed a giggle.

"Are you a communist, comrade?" Rose asked.

"Absolutely," Dimitri said, keeping a straight face. "I visit to Lenin's tomb once a year to mourn. I only came to United States to spread communist message."

"And evil," Eddie said again.

"Right," Dimitri said. "Communist message, and evil."

"What about you?" Adrian said, gesturing to Rose. "Are you evil?"

She sniffed herself. "I don't know," she said. "It's so hard to tell when it's yourself, you know?"

"True, true," Adrian said, with a touch of sadness. "That's what makes being evil so tough. It's hard to know if you're evil_ enough_, am I right?" All three dhampirs nodded their heads solemnly. Then Adrian casually picked up a brownie from a plate on the coffee table and took a bite. "Good brownie," he commented, then took a sip of coffee from a nearby mug.

I was having a hard time keeping a straight face throughout this impromptu presentation, but Rick was looking steadily more frightened. It was a look I had seen on his face only once before – when we'd been pulled over for speeding, and the cop wasn't one he knew. But this level of fear far outdistanced what I'd seen that day, years ago. I hoped that God would forgive me, because I was really, really enjoying this.

"So, Rick," I said, and followed Adrian's lead – a bite of brownie, followed by a sip of coffee. "Want to tell us why you _really_ came home early? That line about intuition just isn't cutting it for me."

"You don't believe men can have intuition?" Rick sneered.

"No," I said. "I just don't believe that _you_ have intuition. I think that you came home because you wanted to know why I hadn't called you about the girls' kidnapping."

"The girls were kidnapped?" Rick said, all innocence, and I saw Rose roll her eyes.

"Don't act like that," I told Rick. "You _know_ they were."

"How would I know?" he asked.

"You're the one who ordered the kidnapping," I said. "It's obvious. You used the same idiots who you hired in the past to do your witness intimidation. They didn't know your name, but they said they worked for a fancy lawyer, and the description they gave fits you perfectly." I watched Rick carefully, and while his expression didn't change much, his face drained of color. "And if that isn't enough," I added, "the two sweatshirts you provided were, as usual, the wrong size. The one you got for Amy fit Violet. The one you got for Violet would maybe fit a toddler. You do the same thing every time you buy them clothes."

A full minute passed in which Rick didn't speak. Finally, he met my eye and said, "Look, they were never in any danger. The guys were instructed not to actually hurt them."

"Violet's arm was broken during an escape attempt," I said. I took a big bite of brownie to distract myself from the memory of my baby crying her eyes out.

"What are you talking about, she broke her arm?" he said, looking up. "She looked fine to me a few minutes ago."

"Adrian is a spirit-user," I said. "He healed her." Then I took a sip of my coffee. It was really good, actually.

"You allowed that creature to use... magic... on my daughter?"

I took a deep breath, then said, "You lost all moral high ground when you ordered the kidnapping of your own children, Rick. I'm going to ask you to refrain from that crap for the rest of this interview."

"And I'll ask you to refrain from referring to my _children_," Rick said. "I have one child. One child, and one interloper, who's been eating my food..."

"I buy the groceries with my mechanic's pay," I said.

"Whatever. I pay the mortgage. I put a roof over their heads, bought their clothes, paid their doctors' bi–"

"Oh, shut up!" I shouted, interrupting him. And to my surprise, he did. "Just shut up and stop the self-righteousness!" I crossed the room in a few long steps and leaned over so that my face was inches from his. "You don't get to complain, Rick. You get to explain a few things and then beg for some goddamn mercy because you're the one who hired a bunch of stupid goons to terrify and endanger my babies!"

"You'll never prove it," Rick hissed. "You can have all the theories you want, but there is no evidence."

Dimitri and Eddie each took a brownie from the plate and began munching contentedly between sips of their coffee. "These are really good," Eddie muttered to Dimitri, under his breath.

"Fine," I muttered. "Rick, maybe you and I should just agree to disagree. Part as friends. Dimitri, do you want to loosen his bonds a little?"

"If you're sure that's right thing to do," Dimitri said, in his heavy fake accent.

"Yes," Rick said, assuming a posture of superiority as best he could. "If you let me go, I _might_ not press charges."

"Like you could get the charges to stick," Adrian said.

"Shh," I said to Adrian, putting my arm around him. "We've antagonized Rick enough."

"You certainly have," Rick said, puffing up a little.

"Look, I think this got really out of hand," I said. "Do you maybe want some coffee or a brownie or something, and we can just talk about this?"

"Does the coffee have caffeine in it?"

"Well, yes..."

"Then, just a brownie, thank you," Rick said. "I don't like to pollute my body."

"Right," I said, and brought the plate over to him. Now that his bonds were loosened a little, he was able to just grab hold of a brownie from the plate. I took one too, and we both began eating. I took a sip of my coffee and waited.

"It's a good thing you're starting to see the light," Rick said. "For Violet's sake, we really should work out a solution."

"What solution?" I asked.

"I'll keep Violet, you can have the creature. Equitable division of assets."

"Right," I said. "North Carolina isn't a community property state." I was familiar with divorce law because of all the time I'd spent around Rick, and could throw terminology around just like he could. "But I think a more equitable division would be for me to keep the girls. You can keep... your mouth shut."

Rick let out a fake sounding laugh. "Right, right," he said. "Funny. So, tell me, why did you frightening people come here?" He bit his lip, then looked perplexed for a moment. "I meant, you _people_. Why did you come here? To help my wife be insubordinate?"

"More or less," I said, speaking for my friends. "They came here to rescue my daughters from the kidnappers."

"Did you pay them?" Rick asked.

"She didn't have to," Adrian said. "They came because they're her friends. Do you have any friends like that?"

"Not really," Rick said, then looked slightly surprised again. He finished his brownie, and I offered him another one. He selected one and took a bite, then immediately said, "These are very good. I can't make brownies or any baked goods. I remember one time when you made cupcakes that were really, really good. It was Amy's sixth birthday party, and she looked so cute in that little pink dress, and now of course I know she's a monster but back then I thought she was cute, and anyway, the cupcakes, I was a little jealous that you could make something so good from basic ingredients, though of course baking is women's work, but I..." He trailed off, looking downright bewildered, then looked at the brownie, confused. "Is there something _in_ these brownies?" he asked.

"No," I said, thoughtfully. "Not that I know of." I took a big bite of mine, then looked around the room. "No problems, right?"

"No," everyone said.

I took a sip of my coffee, then said, "No problems here, Rick. Maybe you're just a little worked up from adrenaline."

"That could be it," Rick said. "Because you people absolutely terrify me." His eyes widened and he bit his lip.

"So," I said, casually. "Tell me again why you ordered the kidnapping? I forget."

"Hiding assets and creating fear," Rick said. "So that when I leave you, my assets will be protected."

"You were planning to leave me?" I said. Absurdly, I felt offended.

"Yes," he said.

"What assets were you trying to protect?" Adrian asked, mildly. "Financial assets?"

"Of course," Rick said. "See, under North Carolina law, section 3-81.5, because Sydney helped support me in my last year of law school, she's entitled to half the money I've made from the exercise of my profession. The ransom would have subtracted two million dollars from my assets, effectively hiding it from view."

"And you would have done _what_ with the money, exactly?" I asked. "Swiss bank account?"

"No one uses Swiss accounts anymore. Not since the case of June 18, 1997, when a man named Gerald McFee –"

"Ok, ok," I said, cutting him off. "Not a Swiss account. But something similar? An offshore account?"

"Cayman Islands," Rick said. "I already have the account set up. It's account number 392765891. I would have brought the cash with me on my next trip down there and then –"

"I get it," I said. "So it was just a financial decision? You valued the girls' safety less than the money?"

"Well, they weren't in any real danger," Rick said, and I knew he believed it to be true, or he wouldn't be saying it. "But it wasn't just financial. I knew that with the fear you went through during the kidnapping, I'd be able to pressure you into accepting a smaller divorce settlement. You would have felt defeated and frightened by the world. You're not a very tough person, Sydney. Although maybe I've been wrong about that. I never would have guessed you'd be calm around these monsters. Or have an affair with one. Or have an affair at all. I'm really hurt by that actually and oh my lord why can't I stop talking?"

"No reason," I said, and took another sip of the coffee. "No reason at all."

"I want to know something," Adrian said. "You married the most amazing woman on earth. Why didn't you treat her better?"

"She bothered me," Rick said, immediately. "Because I always felt like she was laughing at me behind my back. Besides, I knew you never loved me, Sydney. I knew it. Not even a little. And then you stopped getting pregnant. So I wanted to find someone who wouldn't laugh at me and would get pregnant and I really wish I could stop talking."

"Did you ever love me?" I asked, and immediately regretted it, though it was too late to stop him from answering.

"Kind of," Rick said. "I was fascinated by you. A successful alchemist, so young, and so very very beautiful. I thought that if you were by my side, we could become a powerful alchemist family. My brother Ethan is the alchemist in the family, not me. I was always so jealous. I wanted to be an alchemist too, but I wasn't allowed. This was the next best thing. I thought one of our children could be an alchemist. Then you left the alchemists. Amy started showing signs of being way too stubborn and flighty to ever be an alchemist. And Violet isn't tough enough. She's too affectionate and shy. She's a nice kid, but no alchemist. We needed to try again."

"I can't listen to any more of this," I said. I was feeling sick to my stomach.

"I'll listen for you," Rose said, putting her hand on my arm. "Do you have anything to record video with? Something really high quality? My phone is kind of broken."

"Yeah," I said, and ran up to the playroom to grab our videocamera. When I came back, Rick was babbling about how scared he was of being alone in the room with the monsters, and trying desperately to stop talking. I handed Rose the camera.

"Oh, yeah," Rose said. "This is a like, pro quality." She pushed a button on the top of the camera, then said, "Hey, Rick. How did you plan the kidnapping?"

Rick closed his mouth firmly.

"Adrian?" I murmured. "We'll need your help..."

Adrian leaned close to Rick and looked him in the eye. "Talk," he said, firmly. "Talk and keep talking. Answer every question. I don't have to tell you to be honest, but I will tell you to be complete, and to keep talking until we tell you to stop."

"Ok," Rick said, clearly uncomfortable.

"Perfect," Rose said. "Hey, Ricky. Look at the camera and give us a smile. Good! _There_ you go. Now start from the beginning."

Rick nodded and started to talk. "Well, a few months ago, I met this rather attractive young woman who lives up in Virginia..."

Luckily for me, that was when the doorbell rang again, giving me an excuse to leave the room. I went to answer the door, and was surprised to see several beefy looking men and a cheerful looking woman with her hair in a green bandana. "Hi!" she said. "I'm Claire. Here to help you move!"

"Oh," I said, shaking her hand. "I'm Sydney. I'm um, moving."

"Great! Take me to your stuff!" she said dramatically, in much the same way science-fiction aliens often say "Take me to your leader."

I brought and her team up to the playroom, where Amy was still reading her book with the sleeping Violet beside her. Amy looked pretty sleepy herself, but she perked up when the strangers came into the room. We all agreed to talk and move quietly so as not to wake Violet up. Then, with Amy's help, I showed the movers everything in the room that we wanted to pack. Adrian came up to investigate during this discussion, and when I asked, he suggested that we put my mother's old couch into storage for later. I loved that he didn't even bat an eye at my insistence that we keep it.

"Can I show you what to pack in my room?" Amy asked, and Claire agreed.

"Would you show them Violet's room, too?" I asked. "You know what she'd want to pack. And please don't go into the living room, ok?"

She agreed, and she and Claire went downstairs, trailed by the rest of the movers.

Once Amy was out of the room, Adrian pulled me close to him, and I leaned against him. I was exhausted, and his presence gave me some strength. He breathed in deep, as if taking me in. "I wish I could just stay here with you for a while," he murmured. "I'm running on empty here."

"Me too," I said.

"Are you ok?" he asked. "I mean, hearing Rick's confession..."

"I'll deal with it later," I said. "I have to hold it together until we're done here. Thank God, pretty much all that's left is the packing."

"You could always skip the packing, scrap most of your stuff and buy new stuff. Abe will make sure that you get plenty of money in the divorce, so you can afford it. Also, you have a really rich boyfriend." He grinned.

"You forgot to mention handsome and charming," I said.

"I did," he said. "I must have had too much of that coffee. That was a pretty brilliant move, by the way – putting the antidote to your memory compound in the coffee..."

"Well, there was no other way to trick him into thinking the brownies were safe to eat," I said. "I was pretty sure that compulsion alone wouldn't quite do the job on him. He's extremely strong-willed."

"You were right," Adrian said. "I don't know how much I could have pushed the guy, especially with how tired I am."

"I'm tired too," I said. "But I should go upstairs and show the movers what to take from my room."

"I'm telling you, we can skip most of this packing," Adrian said. "Philly has some great shopping."

I paused to think about that, then shook my head 'no.' "I want normalcy for the girls, you know?" I said. Familiarity. And there's no reason to be wasteful."

Adrian nodded. "I figured you'd say that," he said. "If you want to go upstairs, I'll hang out with Violet in case she wakes up."

He gave me a quick kiss and I left the playroom and made my way upstairs, carefully avoiding the living room as I passed it. I found the moving team in Violet's room, where Amy was showing them what to pack. I pointed out a few other things to pack, and then when Claire was done taking notes in Violet's room, I showed her the things I wanted from my room as well. As the movers began putting items into boxes, I grabbed the suitcases I'd packed for our "vacation," and Amy and I went back downstairs and up to the playroom.

Adrian was sitting on the couch with Violet, watching her sleep, no doubt making sure that her dreams weren't too scary.

"Oh, you have your suitcases?" Adrian said. "That's perfect, because the limo just got here, so we can go put those right into the trunk."

"A limo!" Amy said, loudly, and then clapped her hand over her mouth, looking guiltily at Violet. "A limo!" she repeated, in a whisper. "That's so cool."

"A limo?" I repeated, as well. "For our trip to DC?"

"It's going to take us to the Henderson-Oxford airport," Adrian said, naming a tiny airport that was only about fifteen minutes away. "I have a private jet waiting to take us to DC – it should save us at least two hours of travel time."

"But my car," I said.

"Don't worry, Sage," he said. "One of the movers can drive your car up to Philly if you want."

"I _do_ want," I said. "I don't just abandon cars."

"Of course you don't," he said. "Remember Latte?"

"Poor Latte," I said. "A really loyal car."

"What's this car's name?" he asked. "You never mentioned."

"It doesn't have a name," I said, crossing my fingers behind my back.

"Yes it does," Amy said. I gave Amy the "shhh!" gesture but she ignored me and said, "The car is named Jet Steel, just like you in the phone."

Adrian laughed. "You named your car Jet Steel?"

"Shut up," I said, blushing. "Shut up shut up shut up..."

"I love it, Sage," Adrian said. "I just love it."

"What's so funny?" Amy asked, looking back and forth between us.

"Nothing," I said, firmly. "And thank you, I'd appreciate it if a driver can bring my car up to Philadelphia... But he better put my seat and mirrors back like how he found them."

"I wouldn't have it any other way," Adrian said. "Ok, let me take these suitcases out to the car, so we'll be all ready to go." He made a funny face at Amy, who laughed, then he left the room, carrying both suitcases.

"Mom?" Amy whispered, once he was gone.

"Yes, honey?"

"Who _is_ Adrian, really? Like, I know his name and where he lives and all these things but who _is_ he? I mean..." She trailed off, frustrated.

What she really wanted to know – though she was too young to be able to articulate it clearly – was, 'Who is Adrian to _me_?' I vowed to myself that before the weekend was out, I would tell her that, but still felt that it would be wrong to tell her right now.

"Sometime soon, we'll have a talk, ok?" I said. "About Adrian, and Rose, and Sonya, and all the weird things that have happened, and everything. There are a lot of things I want to explain to you. But right _now, _the most important thing is that we get out of here and go someplace nicer. I want to make sure that you and Violet are safe." We both looked over at Violet, who was sleeping peacefully.

"Poor Vy-Vy," Amy whispered. It was one of the many things I loved about Amy. She'd been through a lot herself in the last 24 hours, and she still had room for concern and pity for someone else.

"You two girls will both be ok," I said. I gave her a quick hug and a kiss, then said, "I have to take care of a few more things, and then we'll leave, ok?" She nodded.

I started to head back down to the living room, when Amy stopped me. "Mom?" she said. "Um, thanks for coming for us. For me and Violet, I mean. Thanks for rescuing us."

"Of course," I said. "You know I'd move heaven and earth for you if I had to."

"Would you slay a dragon?" she asked, grinning.

"Dragons aren't so bad," I said. "Kind of misunderstood."

"What?" Amy asked, perplexed, but at that moment, the doorbell rang for the third time that night.

I ran down to get it, Amy hot on my heels. I opened the door to find a young Moroi woman with long blonde hair and small, pretty features. She carried a briefcase and was dressed in a long, expensive looking coat. "Hi," she said, in a smooth, professional voice. "My name is Marika Lohr. I'm a notary public. Mr. Mazour sent me over. Are you Sydney?"

"Yes," I said, surprised. "Come on in."

She stepped inside, and I closed the door behind her. "I hope I got here in time," she said, taking off her coat and hanging it on a nearby coat-hook. Under the coat, she was wearing a tailored blazer and a short, tight, pencil skirt. For a Moroi, she was surprisingly curvy. "Oh! And who is _this_?" she added, looking at Amy.

"My name is Amy," my daughter said, uncertainly.

"Aren't you just the cutest little dhampir!" Marika Lohr said, as if Amy were a puppy, and I winced.

"What did you call me?" Amy asked. I recognized the edge of anger in her tone.

"Her name is _Amy_," I said, emphatically. "Amy, why don't you go back and check on your sister?"

"Sure, Mom," she said, through gritted teeth, and turned to leave, but at that moment, the front door opened and Adrian came back in from dropping off our suitcases.

"Hi, Miss," he said to Marika Lohr, closing the door behind him. "I saw you pull up. I tried to flag you down, but I guess you didn't see me." He put his arm around Amy, and she leaned against him comfortably. "Can I help you?" Adrian asked the new-comer.

"Oh," Marika said, looking back and forth between him and Amy. "I'm here with the divorce papers," she said, jumping to a conclusion. "I'm sorry it didn't work out for you and your... wife." She looked mildly revolted at the thought of Adrian and me being married, and then shrugged, smiled, and began twirling one strand of her hair around her fingers. "Maybe you and I can meet later on to... talk. Divorce can be soooo tough, especially on fathers of young children." Then she actually batted her eyelashes.

"My soon-to-be-ex husband is in the other room," I said. "This is my friend, Adrian Ivashkov." I didn't like the way she was eying him – like he was a glazed doughnut or something.

"Ohhh," she said, her eyes widening "_The_ Adrian Ivashkov?" She looked one more time at Adrian, took a deep breath and seemed to mentally shake herself. "Sorry if I spoke out of turn, Lord Ivashkov. Um. Sure, just lead me to the, um, other involved party, so we can get these papers signed."

"I'll show you the way," I said, looking at Adrian and then down to Amy.

"Come on, A-mazing," he said, picking up on my hint. "I'll take you back up to the playroom."

He lifted her up in the air and she giggled. As they walked in the opposite direction, I heard Amy say, "Why did she call you 'Lord', Adrian?"

I couldn't hear his reply, and I made a mental note to ask him later what answer he'd given her.

When we walked into the living room, we were met with an interesting scene– a man tied to a chair and three other people ignoring him. Apparently, the memory serum had worn off at least partially, because Rick was quiet now. Rose had turned the camera off, and she and the other dhampirs were talking quietly together. Rick's bonds had been re-tightened, I noticed, and he looked extremely uncomfortable and more than a little out of it.

"Hey guys," I said. "Did you get what you needed?"

"Absolutely," Rose said. "It was awesome."

"Rick gave an Oscar-worthy performance as Asshole of the Year," Eddie said, then looked over at Marika Lohr. She was twisting her hair around her fingers nervously as she looked from Eddie to Dimitri to Rick. "Hi," Eddie said, looking her up and down.

"Hi," she said. "I'm the notary, here with the divorce papers. Who is the other involved party?"

"He is," I said, pointing to Rick.

"Um," Marika Lohr said, obviously quite anxious about the strange situation. "Am I to understand that this gentleman is not signing these papers under his own free will?"

"You're damn right," Rick said.

"Not at all," Dimitri said. Marika Lohr took him in – all 6'7 of him. I could see her pupils dilate a little, and I wasn't sure if it was from attraction or fear. Maybe it was a little of each. "This man is clearly very willing to sign these papers," Dimitri said.

"I couldn't agree more," Eddie said, and took a few steps closer to Marika, who stared at him with wide eyes. He offered her one of his hands, and she shook it. "Nice to make your acquaintance," he said. "I'm Guardian Edison Castile. What's your name?"

"Marika," she said, smiling nervously. "It's um, nice to meet you, Guardian."

He smiled. "Nice to meet _you_, Marika."

Her smile grew even brighter. "No, it's nice to meet _you_," she said, apparently not noticing that she'd already said that.

Eddie paused, then looked over at me. I shrugged. I saw him take a moment to make a decision, and then he slid his arm around Marika's waist. "I was just thinking of making some tea," he said. "I'd love to make a cup for you, Marika."

"I'd love that, Guardian," she said, blushing. "But um, the contract..."

"Here," Eddie said, taking the papers from her hand and putting them down on the coffee table. "Let's not worry about those."

"Oh," she said, all her professionalism gone. "That sounds um, yeah... Tea..."

As they disappeared into the kitchen, I glanced over at Dimitri and Rose, and wasn't all that surprised to see Rose almost biting her lip to keep from laughing. Then I picked up the papers Marika had left behind and began skimming them.

"Miss me?" Adrian said, coming back into the room. He looked around at us. "What's so funny?"

"I'll tell you later," Rose said. "Look, Sydney has the divorce contract..."

"Oh, awesome," Adrian said. "Sydney, you have to read it out loud. I've _got_ to hear this."

"I _should_ read it out loud," I said. "After all, Rick, it's only fair that you know what you'll be signing."

I began reading. In precise, legal language, the contract spelled out the immediate dissolution of my marriage. It stated that I was entitled to any and all desired items from the house, full custody of the children, as well as a one-time cash payment of two million dollars, which the contract referred to as "compensation." Rose's eyes twinkled when I read that part, and I knew it was her idea. The contract also stated that Rick had absolutely no visitation rights for the children, or even any right to contact them.

When I was done reading, Rick said contemptuously, "No way am I signing that. When I'm done with you in court, Sydney, you'll be lucky if you don't wind up in prison."

Adrian knelt down by Rick's chair and looked him right in the eye. "Listen up, jackass," Adrian said. "Here's what's going to happen. You're going to sign the papers. You're going to relinquish custody of Amy and Violet. And you'll never do them, or Sydney, any harm ever again, directly or indirectly."

"I'm willing to give you the creature," Rick said, snobbishly. "But Violet is my daughter and she's staying with me."

"They're both leaving with us, and staying with us," I said. "It says so very clearly in this document."

"Or what? Your boyfriend will bite me?" Despite his big talk, I could see the terror shining in his eyes.

"Now that you mention it, I am starting to get a little peckish," Adrian said. "Normally, I wouldn't want blood from a disgusting person like you, but, well, desperate times call for desperate measures." He grinned widely, showing his fangs, and Rick recoiled in horror.

"We also have this," I said, picking up the video camera Rose had left on the table. "Your full confession."

"That was given under duress," Rick said, faintly. "It won't be admissible."

"I didn't see any duress," Dimitri said, pleasantly. "I saw you spilling your guts happily. And I bet a man like yourself would have a lot of guts. Don't you think so, Rose?"

"Lots of guts," Rose said. "If I laid them out end to end, they would probably stretch all the way to New York."

"And even if the tape doesn't turn out to be admissible," I said, "I'm pretty sure that you could be made to do give that exact same testimony again at any time. Right, Adrian?"

"Definitely," Adrian said, grinning widely again. "It would be my delight to have you say all of that stuff under oath in a courtroom."

"Maybe we could have him incarcerated at Terasov," Rose suggested, innocently. "I mean, he committed a crime against an ex-alchemist."

"I'm sure we could," I lied. "Of course, that might mean he'd have to share a cell with a dhampir."

"Would that make you uncomfortable, sir?" Dimitri asked, crouching down on one side of Rick's chair. Even crouching, Dimitri towered over Rick. "Does it make you uncomfortable to be around dhampirs?"

"He said before that he was _afraid_ of dhampirs," Rose said, leaning down so that she was actually resting her hands on his shoulders. "Are you even afraid of me? A girl? A girl who's at least a foot shorter than you?"

Rick closed his eyes, his only defense. "You're not natural," he hissed. "None of you are. Get away from me." And he began to recite the _Our Father_.

"We'll get away from you as soon as you sign the contract," Rose said.

"And agree to its conditions," I said, speaking loud enough that he had to hear me over his muttered prayer.

"You're not going to seek Sydney out," Adrian added. "You're not going to attempt to discredit her within your church or to her family. If people ask, you're just going to say that the marriage didn't work out, and not elaborate in the slightest."

Rick stopped praying and looked around the room miserably, but didn't speak.

"Sign the contract," I said.

Rick sneered to hide his obvious terror, but said, "Fine. Anything to get these _creatures_ out of my house."

Dimitri loosened the ties around Rick's right hand, and Rick took the pen and signed his name at the bottom of the contract. The moment he was done, Adrian leaned over, looked him in the eye, and said one word: "_Sleep_." Rick's head lolled on his shoulders, and his eyes closed.

"Thank you," Rose sang. "Didn't need to listen to him talk any more."

Adrian took a little bow.

"Eddie?" I called towards the kitchen, as I signed the contract as well. "Can you and Ms. Lohr come back, please?"

"You guys all ready?" Eddie answered, and moments later came back into the living room. Marika wandered in after him. I tried not to notice that her lipstick was smeared and her hair was mussed.

She took the contract from me and added her own stamp and signature. That marked the official end of my marriage to Rick, but I didn't have any strong feelings about it. I wondered if I would start to care later.

"Signed and witnessed!" Marika Lohr said, in a decent imitation of her previous professional tone. "I'll file this on Monday morning, bright and early. And if it's not too much trouble, be sure to mention my fast, courteous service to Mr. Mazour."

"I will, next time I see the old man," Rose said. "And if you see him first, tell him his daughter says hi." She grinned widely.

Marika's eyes widened. She evidently had had no idea that Rose was the daughter of the powerful Abe Mazour. "Yes, well, I will, um, Guardian Mazour..."

"Belikov," Rose corrected, pleasantly.

"Right," Marika said. "Meantime, I guess I'll be on my way." Then she glanced at Eddie. "It was nice meeting you, Guardian Castile."

"Yes, Ms. Lohr," Eddie said. "Be sure to say hi if you're ever at court."

"I guess I'll have to make up an excuse to come to court," she said, then blushed a little – as much as a Moroi can blush. She glanced over at me. "Congratulations on your um... divorce!" she said. "I hope your next marriage goes better."

"Thanks," I said, in a flat tone, and watched her almost run out of the room, briefcase in hand.

Once she was gone, Rose elbowed Eddie gently in the side, saying, "What was that?"

Eddie shrugged. "Hey, I'm a single guy," he said. "Why not?"

"You should go after her," Adrian said. "Get her number. She was into you, dude."

"Nah," Eddie said. "I'm not sure if I'll stay single for much longer. I think Jill and I will be ready to talk pretty soon."

"Fair enough," Rose said, gently, and a short silence descended.

"_Well_," I said, a moment later. "Anyway. Um, Eddie, Rose, Dimitri – I really want to thank you guys so much for what you've done..."

"It's not a problem," Rose said. "Really. It was kind of fun, actually."

"Are you really moving up to Pennsylvania?" Eddie asked. "Rose said you'll be staying with Adrian."

"Yes," I said. "I think I'll be staying there for a least a while."

"A _while_," Adrian said. "A _while_, she says." He shook his head in mock exasperation. "You're breaking my heart, Sage."

"But first we're spending a few days in DC to sort of decompress," I went on. "We had a vacation planned there anyway..."

"Go on then, you two," Rose said. "Come visit us at court in a few days, so we can catch up for real."

"Yes, go," Dimitri said. "Take your children away from this place."

"But the movers..." I said.

"We'll hang out here until the movers are gone," Eddie said. "It's fine, Syd."

"I don't know what to say," I said. "Really. I never expected you guys to even remember me, much less still care at all."

"We wouldn't forget you," Dimitri said.

"You leave an impression," Rose said.

"You're my sister, after all," Eddie said.

I felt a blush rising to my face and blinked back a few tears. "Ok," I said. "I guess we better go then. It's getting late."

"We'll see you to the car," Rose said.

Adrian ran up to the playroom and came back downstairs with Violet in his arms and Amy by his side. Violet's eyes were slightly open, and she looked at me sleepily.

"Are we leaving?" she asked quietly.

"Yes," I said.

"And we're never coming back," Amy said, firmly.

"Good," Violet whispered.

We went out the car in a big group – trusting the ropes to restrain the unconscious Rick – and there were several rounds of hugs before Adrian and I got into the back seat of the limo with the girls. Then we waved from the windows as the car pulled out of the driveway.

At Adrian's suggestion, the driver put on the newest Pixar movie for the drive. I saw Amy look behind us at the house as it disappeared from sight, but Violet just put her head down on my shoulder and watched the movie.

_A/N: Hey guys! The next chapter is shaping up to be the fluffiest fluff that ever did fluff, so I hope you have your down pillows and marshmallows ready because it's going to be mega fluffy up in here. _


	18. The Lonely King

_A/N: In this chapter, Adrian tells the girls his story again, the one he made up after the fire. I think the image of him sitting and telling a silly fairy-tale to them – with the characters all obviously based on themselves – is adorable, especially because it sort of reveals something about how Adrian feels. It got kind of long so I thought about cutting it out or shortening it but then I just liked it too much. If you really don't want to read it, just skim through all the italicized stuff, but really, you'll be missing out, because it's super cute. _

**Chapter 18: The Lonely King**

The trip to DC took less than two hours, door to door. The girls had never been in airplane, and enjoyed our short flight from the local airport to Reagan Airport in DC. Violet stared out of the window with wide eyes, and asked me to explain the physics of flight. Amy wasn't as interested in the explanation, but was fascinated with the flight itself, and stated that she wanted to be a pilot someday. Adrian grinned at me when she said that, aware of Amy's constantly changing career ambitions.

Once we landed, Amy got her chance to talk to the pilot, who was actually really flattered to answer questions from someone so interested as Amy was. Then we went out to the limo that was already waiting to take us to the best hotel in DC – of course. It was called the Willard, and even looking at its stolid exterior made me feel a little intimidated. "It's kind of boring on the outside," Adrian murmured. "But I needed a place that was Moroi friendly, so... this is the place to stay."

"I'm sure that it'll be wonderful," I said, as a bellhop appeared to take our luggage. Adrian offered Violet a piggy-back ride into the hotel, and we went inside. The lobby was huge, decorated with yellow and pink marble, and we could see a variety of restaurants and even a gift shop. Every surface was decorated with flourishes and gilded moldings, and every chair and table looked like a museum piece. We were too tired to take it in properly, but I made a mental note to take a better look in the morning.

Adrian's smooth charm induced the desk clerk to give us our keys extremely quickly, and within a few minutes we were in the elevator and headed up to the top floor.

"Is Daddy going to come here, too?" Violet asked in the elevator, as Adrian let her slide back to the ground.

"No, sweetheart," I said. "It's just us. Me and you and Amy and Adrian."

"You're fine," Adrian said, squeezing her shoulder.

"Why is Daddy mad at us?" she asked, tears threatening again.

"I don't know," I said. "I'm sorry." The elevator door opened and we began walking down the hall to our room.

"He's just mean," Amy said, and put her skinny arm around Violet's shoulders as they walked. "But don't worry. If he comes back, I'll protect you."

"Thanks, Aim-Aim," Violet said, and leaned against her.

"That's what big sisters are for," Amy said, resolutely.

Adrian unlocked the door with the keycard – I always hated those things, but he was a master at it – and we walked into our suite. It was completely amazing, of course - the kind of place that was normally reserved for visiting heads of state. There was a huge living room with a small dining area near the window, and on each side was a door that led to a bedroom. Each bedroom had a bathroom of its own, and each bathroom had a Jacuzzi. And every room in the suite had a view of the Washington Monument, which at the moment was lit up against the night sky.

A bellhop came by with our luggage, and Adrian and I put the suitcases in the bedrooms while Violet and Amy wandered around the suite exploring. Then, while the girls were distracted with the giant entertainment system, Adrian pulled me close and murmured, "I hate to say it, but I kind of have to step out for a few minutes..."

"What's wrong?" I asked, alarmed.

"Uh, I wasn't exactly kidding when I told Rick that I was getting hungry," Adrian said. "I have to go out for... well, a bite." He offered me a thin smile. "It won't take too long. They have feeders on hand at the hotel..."

"Ok," I said, surprised that I was as calm about it as I was. He needed blood. Compared to some other reasons he might have had for running off, this wasn't so bad. "Do what you have to do," I said. "Just don't bite anyone prettier than me."

"Not possible," he said, and gave me a quick kiss. Then he quietly slipped into the hall.

The girls had already moved on to exploring the mini-bar – I started to warn them not to eat anything, then decided I didn't really care – and when they were done there, they spent a few minutes delightedly turning the fireplace on and off with a switch on the wall. It was nice to see that they weren't afraid of fire, I reflected, and waited for the novelty to wear off a little. Once they had begun to settle back down, Violet looked around and then asked me nervously where Adrian had gone. Amy looked around too, her eyes beginning to grow wide with anxiety.

"He had to do something quickly," I said. "But don't worry. He's coming back. See?" I took them into our room so that they could see his suitcase was still there, and they visibly relaxed. "He's coming back soon," I added. "Let's get all ready for bed so that when he comes back he can read stories with us."

No little girl likes getting ready for bed, but the novelty of using a new bathroom and sleeping in a fancy hotel bed was at least a slight inducement. Because their bathroom had both a shower and a bathtub, they were able to get cleaned up at the same time. I left them to it and jumped into the shower in my bathroom, too, glad to wash off what felt like layers of smoke and dirt. When I was out of the shower, I threw on a pair of running shorts and a tank top – I had picked them out carefully as something to sleep in, hoping they looked casual but cute – and went out into the living room to find Adrian at the small round table by the window, sketching.

"Hey," he said, and smiled. He was a bit pinker looking than I'd last seen him, which made me slightly uncomfortable. I knew it would still take me a while to be fully comfortable with the reality of Adrian's … quirks. "I heard the water running and didn't want to interrupt anyone," he said, and closed his sketchbook before I could see what he was drawing. I went to give him a hug, and he withdrew slightly, saying, "You're so clean now that I feel extra gross. Let me go take a shower."

I wondered if that was his only issue. "No," I said, and squeezed him tight. "Hug me first."

He laughed. "Twist my arm," he said, and hugged me tightly. He did have a noticeable smokey smell to him from the fire, but it didn't bother me. I told him to come join me in the girls' room when he was done cleaning up, and he agreed.

I went to check on the girls and found them in their pajamas, brushing their teeth. I got the feeling that they were on their best behavior, and was grateful for that. I brushed Violet's hair while Amy brushed her own, and then we climbed into one of the two huge beds to read together. I had chosen one of the Harry Potter books, hoping that the familiarity of their favorite story would help soothe them to sleep.

We had only been reading for a few minutes when Adrian popped his head in the room. "Room for one more?" he asked, as he took a few hesitant steps into the room. He was wearing a t-shirt and pajama pants, and even from where I sat I could smell his clean, soapy scent.

"Of course," I said. "There's plenty of room for you."

"Come read with us," Amy said, excitedly. She patted the space next to her.

"You can be Dumbledore," Violet said.

So he crawled into the bed with us. We did a little re-shuffling until all parties were satisfied with the arrangement. I lay on one end of the bed, Violet next to me, then Amy, and then Adrian on the other end.

It was fun to read with Adrian. As I had guessed he would, he did great character voices, and we assigned him the roles of Dumbledore, Snape, and Draco. To avoid argument, I was always Harry and the narrator when we read, and I had those roles tonight, as well. Amy played Hermione and all unassigned boys, and Violet played Ron and all the unassigned girls. We read for a few minutes, giggling at Adrian's dramatic rendition of the parts. After a while, though, Violet got tired and said that I could read her parts. Then Amy, her eyes heavy, let Adrian have hers. By the time I finished the chapter and closed the book, I looked over to see that both girls were asleep, and Adrian was gazing at them as if he'd never seen anything quite like them before.

Originally, of course, the plan had been for Amy to move to her own bed when we were done reading, but she was fast asleep, and looked comfortable, to boot. And the king sized bed was big enough for Violet to kick as much as she wanted and not hit Amy. So Adrian and I, communicating in hand gestures and terse whispers, crawled out of the bed and dimmed the lights to a night-light level.

I took a few steps towards the door, intending to go back out to the living room, but then I stopped. I didn't want to let the girls out of my sight tonight. So I got into the other bed, the one that was supposed to be for Amy, and gestured for Adrian to do the same. He lay down next to me, and we cuddled up like spoons, his arm around my waist.

I was so comfortable in the huge, soft bed, with my girls right in front of my eyes, and my Adrian right next to me. I thought I'd fall asleep right away, especially after the long, eventful night. But it actually took me a little while. Every time I started to fall asleep, the image of Rick reaching for Amy or Violet would rise in my mind's eye and I'd jerk awake again, every muscle tense.

"It's ok," Adrian whispered, each time. "Shh. You're with me. The girls are safe. Just relax."

I focused on the feeling of his warmth against my back, and the feeling of his breathing, his ribs expanding and contracting against me. I focused on the sound of the girls breathing quietly, evenly, peacefully. "Rick's not here," I thought to myself. "You'll never see Rick again."

Slowly, my eyes closed, and this time, they stayed closed.

* * *

A small, insistent voice dragged me from sleep.

"Mommy?" the voice said. "I'm sorry to wake you up. But Mr. Adrian asked me to."

I sat up and opened my eyes. Violet was staring at me, her amber brown eyes still a little swollen from all the crying she'd been doing lately. Despite that, though, her expression was happy.

"No need to say sorry, honey," I told her, and hugged her to me. "It's ok. What does Mr. Adrian want?"

"He wants to take us to breakfast," Violet answered. "He says we can have breakfast downstairs in the lobby, or if that's too fancy for us, we can go to the International House of Pancakes. I always wanted to try pancakes from every country, although I don't know if my stomach is big enough."

"I'm not sure that's really what they have at IHOP, sweetheart," I said, hiding a smile. "But let me get dressed and we can figure it out." I got out of bed and squeezed her so hard she protested a little. Then she giggled and went back out to the living room while I quickly got cleaned up and dressed.

When I went out to the living room, I found the girls seated on either side of Adrian on a large couch. He was clean and dressed, and his sketchbook was in his lap. I wondered how long he'd been awake. There was a beautiful silver coffee service on the small round table, and an empty cup, showing that Adrian had already had at least one cup of coffee.

"Come sit with us, Mommy," Violet said, patting the space next to her.

"One minute, sweetie," I said, pouring myself a cup of coffee. Then I joined the group on the couch. I gave Violet another kiss, then hugged and kissed Amy good-morning. She was surprisingly affectionate, letting me hug her tightly without any sign of eye-rolling or anything. Then Adrian leaned over Violet's head to kiss me hello. I realized, in a sort of weird delayed reaction, that it was the first time that the girls had seen him kiss me. But it probably wasn't so surprising to them. After all, they had probably woken up to see us in bed together.

"Adrian's just about to tell us his story again," Amy said. "He drew pictures to go along with it, isn't that cool, Mommy?"

"I woke up early," Adrian said. "My sleep-schedule's all messed up. Anyway, since I was awake, I thought I'd draw some pictures, and I ended up sort of fleshing out the story, putting in a few more characters."

"I'd love to see what you made," I said, and picked up my coffee.

"Well, I was just going to tell the story until you woke up," he said. "We can do it later."

"No way," I said. "I'm hearing the story this time. No excuses."

"Ok," he said. He took a deep breath. "Here goes," he said, and opened his sketchbook. We were looking at a small pencil sketch of a tall tower, covered in vines, in the middle of an overgrown forest.

_The Tale of the Turtle-Horse_ (Adrian said)

_Once upon a time, there were two brave little Princesses named Amaryllis and Violetta. They lived at the top of a tall, tall tower, all alone. They were happy because they were such good friends, but one day, they decided that they should leave the tower and go on an adventure. _

"_We've been in this tower a long time," said Princess Amaryllis._

"_Yes, it's getting boring," said Princess Violetta._

"_I'd rather have an adventure in the wide, wide world," said Princess Amaryllis._

"_It's kind of a long way down, though," said Princess Violetta._

"_I wonder if there's an easier way," said Princess Amaryllis._

"_Maybe if we look, we'll find some stairs," said Princess Violetta._

_So, they looked around, and what do you know? They found some stairs after all. So they went down the stairs. That was easy enough, really. _

"There were stairs all along," giggled Amy.

"This is a silly story," said Violet, which was her highest compliment.

"Go on," I said, and Adrian turned the page of his sketchbook.

Now we saw a sketch of two princesses – both light haired, one a little taller than the other – in a forest glade. They were talking to an utterly bizarre creature, who I deduced had to be the title character.

"Oh, you drew the turtle-horse!" Amy said happily, and giggled again.

"He's my favorite," Violet said.

Adrian continued telling the story.

_Once they were down on the ground _(he said),_ they went walking. Soon, they met a strange creature who looked a little like a turtle and a little like a horse. His body was narrow like a horse's, but he had a beautiful green and gold shell, like a turtle's. His skin was green and scaly like a turtle's, but his head rose up erect, like a horse's. He had a turtley face, but a long beautiful mane and tail. His legs were a little wobbly and green, like turtle legs, but long and thin, like horse legs, and tipped with green and gold hooves. _

"_Hello," said the Princesses. "What even _are_ you, good creature?"_

"_I'm a turtle-horse," said the turtle-horse. "I have no name, for I am the only turtle-horse who ever lived. And I never had a friend, because most people think I'm too weird to be friends with." And he hung his head sadly. _

"_Poor turtle-horse," said the Princess Violetta. _

"_We'll be your friend, for sure," said Princess Amaryllis. "Would you like to come on our adventure with us?"_

"_We'll have lots of fun," said Princess Violetta. _

_And the turtle-horse was happy that they liked him – so happy, in fact, that he said they could ride on his back. The Princesses quickly wove themselves some soft saddles out of reeds – they were good at things like that, being princesses – and they climbed on the turtle-horse's back. _

Again, Adrian turned the page. The drawing on the next page was of the princesses riding on the back of the ridiculous turtle-horse, a cave entrance in the distance.

"This is a new part," Violet said.

"What's in the cave?" Amy asked.

"You'll see," Adrian said.

_So they went riding through the woods on the turtle-horse's back _(Adrian said)_. They had a wonderful time looking at the trees and flowers. But after a while, they heard a sound like loud music in the distance. They went to follow the sound and they found that it was coming from a dark cave. So they climbed off of the turtle-horse's back and investigated the cave. Inside, they found a deep, dark pit._

"_Let's go down and find out where that music is coming from," said Princess Amaryllis._

"_We can climb down that ladder," said Princess Violetta. There was a ladder that went down to the bottom of the pit, you see._

_They were nervous, but they climbed down the long ladder. And there at the bottom, they found a lonely King, sitting by himself in the dark and listening to loud music."An evil sorcerer took my Queen away and encased her in ice," he explained. He had to shout over the music. "I tried to get her back, but couldn't fight the sorcerer. But it's ok now, because I'm having a party. Can't you tell what a good party it is? The music is very loud!" _

"_But it's dark," shouted Princess Violetta._

"_But there's no one else here," shouted Princess Amaryllis. _

_Then the sensible Princesses turned the lights on and the music off. _

Adrian turned the page again. The picture now showed the princesses standing by a king, who was sitting on the ground. They looked sympathetic and kind. The king himself was long-limbed and thin, with pale skin and dark, messy hair.

"He looks like a sad king," whispered Violet.

"Poor king," said Amy.

_The King began to weep _(Adrian said)_. "Princesses, I must tell you the truth," he said. "I'm really all alone and lonely without my Queen. So I've been pretending to have a really kickin' party to hide the truth. Boo-hoo!" _

_So the Princesses consoled the poor King. _

"_Come on, climb up out of your sad pit," said Princess Violetta._

"_Yes, come on an adventure with us, and have fun," said Princess Amaryllis. _

"_And maybe," Princess Violetta said, "maybe we'll find your Queen and rescue her."_

"_I'm not afraid of any sorcerers," Princess Amaryllis said. _

"_Me either," said Princess Violetta._

_So they all climbed up out of the pit together. The Princesses introduced the lonely King to the turtle-horse, and they totally dug each other, so that was ok. The Princesses wove him a nice saddle out of reeds, and they all rode away together. _

"They always make saddles out of reeds," Violet said.

"That's what you make saddles out of in that kingdom," Adrian said, and turned the page again. Now we were looking at a sketch of the princesses and the king riding on the back of the turtle-horse, a castle in the distance and a lake in the foreground.

_The three of them had a wonderful time riding on the turtle-horse _(Adrian said)_. They enjoyed all the beautiful trees and flowers as they rode through the countryside. And then they came to a deep, wide lake. On the other side, they could see a castle on a mountaintop. "That's where my Queen is," said the King. "I miss her so much." He almost began to cry again. So the girls asked the turtle-horse if he could swim to the other side of the lake. _

"_I'm a turtle," he said, proudly. "Of course I can swim." Then he hung his head sadly. "But I'm also a horse," he added. "So I'm afraid of water. That's the difficulty of being a turtle-horse, you see."_

_So the girls showed the turtle-horse that the water wasn't scary by swimming in it themselves. And then the turtle-horse grew brave enough to go into the water. Soon he saw that it wasn't scary at all. "You are such nice Princesses," he told them. "I'm lucky to be friends with you."_

_And so, the turtle-horse swam over to the other side of the lake with his three friends on his shell-back. When they got to the other side, he said he was very tired, and wanted to sleep for a while. So the Princesses wove him a nice pillow out of reeds – there are lots of reeds in this kingdom, if you're wondering – and gave him a kiss goodbye for now. Then they climbed the tall mountain with the lonely King._

"What's a reed?" Violet asked.

"I don't know," Adrian said. "Something you make things out of."

"We can look it up," Amy suggested.

"Later," I said, smiling. "Go on, Adrian."

He turned the page of his sketchbook. The drawing we now saw was of a queen trapped in a block of ice with a hooded figure guarding her, sparks coming out of his wand. I was glad that Adrian hadn't given the sorcerer a visible face.

_When they got to the top _(Adrian said)_, they saw the beautiful Queen, encased in ice. "Queen Celerya!" said the lonely King. "There she is." _

"_Let's all sit on the ice to melt it," said Princess Amaryllis._

"_Or we could make a fire and use that," said Princess Violetta. _

_But before they could do anything, the evil sorcerer appeared. He held up his wand and said, "No, no! You can't have my Queen! I'm going to keep her! For no good reason! Because I don't like fun or happiness!" So the brave princesses ran over to the mean sorcerer and kicked him in the shins a lot. He said, "Ouch, ouch!" and danced up and down, but they kept kicking him. _

_Meanwhile, the lonely King lay down on the Queen's ice block and cried so many hot, salty tears that the ice melted. Once the Queen had been freed from the ice, the King woke her up with True Love's Kiss, just like always happens in stories like this. The Princesses were glad that the Queen was awake, but thought the kissing was too mushy. _

"I don't mind the kissing," Violet said.

"It's ok, this time," Amy said.

"The queen's name is Celerya?" I said.

"Do you have a problem with that, honey pie?" Adrian said, and grinned. He turned the page again, and this time the sketch was of the King, Queen, and two Princesses embracing, with the evil hooded figure sneaking up behind them.

"_Oh, I'm finally awake!" said Queen Celerya."I'm so glad. And these are my two baby Princesses! Don't you remember me?"_

"_Oh my gosh," said Princess Amaryllis, running over to the Queen. "Queen Celerya is our mother!"_

"_I had totally forgotten," said Princess Violetta, running over as well. "I think we were under a spell."_

_And the two Princesses hugged their mother. _

"_Yes," said the Queen. "The sorcerer put a spell on you so that you wouldn't know who you were."_

_But they were interrupted by the sound of evil, evil laughter. It sounded like this: mwah-ha-ha-ha! It was the sorcerer. "Yes, I cast that spell," he said. "And now I'll cast another spell and make you all forget each other!" _

"_You're not the only one who can do spells," said Queen Celerya, and she waved her arms in the air. The sorcerer disappeared in a puff of smoke. It was kind of smelly smoke, actually, so the four heroes decided to leave as fast as they could, to get away from the stink._

"Yay," said Violet.

"Stupid sorcerer," Amy said. "I hate him."

Adrian turned the page again. The picture we saw now showed all four of the main characters riding on the turtle-horse's back into the sunset.

"This is the last bit," Adrian said.

_And then the four heroes went down to the lake, where they found the turtle-horse, nice and rested up. He told them that he knew a nice abandoned castle that they could live in. So they all climbed on his back – more reed weaving there, I guess – and rode away. And the King and Queen and Princesses lived happily ever after. And so did the turtle-horse, who moved into their garage._

"So," Adrian said. "That's the story."

"I loved it," said Violet.

"It was awesome," Amy said, and put her head on his shoulder.

"What did you think, Sage?" he asked.

"I think it was wonderful," I said. I held out my hand, and he passed me the sketchbook. I turned to the picture of the sad king being consoled by the two princesses. Staring down at it, I felt tears sting my eyes a little, though it was hard for me to articulate why.

"Can I ask a question about the story?" Amy said. "Is the lonely king the father of the two princesses?"

"Um," said Adrian, uncomfortably. "I don't know. What do you think?"

"If he's the queen's true love, he has to be her husband, right?" Amy asked.

"Maybe," Adrian said, slowly. "I hadn't even thought about it."

"He's their father," said Violet, firmly. "Obviously."

"Ok, kids," I said. "Let's go get breakfast!"

"Yes," Adrian said. "I'm so hungry, I could eat a turtle-horse!"

"No, don't!" squealed the girls in near-unison.

"Don't worry," Adrian said. "If I ever meet a turtle-horse, I'll bring him home so you can make friends with him, I promise."

This satisfied the girls, and we got ready to leave for breakfast. The girls got their shoes and socks on, and I gulped down the rest of my coffee while Adrian looked around for the key card. Then we made our way down to the lobby, where a bell-hop pointed out the fancy little restaurant that was serving breakfast.

We walked into the restaurant, and almost immediately noticed that there was a musician playing a harp right near the entrance. The host seated us and Adrian placed an order for the table, and soon a waitress brought us a beautiful three-tiered tray covered with tiny sandwiches and cakes. The girls had cocoa and Adrian and I had more coffee, and we just generally enjoyed the fancy ambiance. While the girls played "guess the cake flavor" with their eyes closed, Adrian leaned over and kissed me on the cheek, then whispered, "Did you notice the harp player is playing 'Stairway to Heaven'?"

"No," I said. "But it seems appropriate..."

"Not if you've ever heard any Led Zeppelin," Adrian said, and grinned.

After breakfast, we went out for a day of sight-seeing. It was a little sunny out, so it was tricky to get from place to place along the Mall, but somehow Adrian managed with a liberal dose of sunscreen and pretty dapper looking hat. We saw several of the more famous monuments, then had lunch at a cafe in a strange sculpture garden before we made our afternoon appointment to tour the White House. Amy and Violet looked about ready to die of happiness as we walked through the famous rooms where so many presidents had walked in the past.

"Someday I'll live here," Violet whispered to me.

"Will you let me come to visit?" I asked.

She paused to consider. "Probably," she said.

"Thanks, sweetheart," I said, hiding a smile.

After the tour, we were all exhausted, and we took a taxi – which was an improbable shade of purple – the short distance back to the hotel. It was too early for dinner, and we were too tired to do much more than just hang out and rest, so we decided to do just that for an hour or two. Adrian called room service and ordered a tray of fruit and cheese for us to snack on, as well as more coffee for me. Violet announced her intention to take a bath in the jacuzzi with her book, and I agreed to her proposal, telling myself that we could always buy her a new copy of the book after she dropped it in the water.

While Amy was flipping channels, Adrian murmured to me that he was going to sneak out to the feeders again. "All that magic yesterday took it out of me," he explained, in a low tone.

"I understand," I said, and was glad to find that I wasn't lying. "Don't be long."

"There might be a bit of a wait," he said. "This is right about the time most Moroi wake up. But I'll be back A.S.A.P." Then he said, in a louder voice, "I'll be back in a few minutes, A-mazing, ok?"

"Oh," she said. She got up from the couch and ran to give him a hug. "Where are you going?" she asked, her voice muffled in his coat.

"Just running a quick errand," he said. "I'll be right back."

She pulled back and offered him a little smile. "Ok," she said. Then she turned her head and looked at the mirror that was hanging on the back of the door. Adrian followed her gaze, and the two of them looked into the mirror together. A funny look crossed Amy's face, but then she looked away. "Bye for now," she said, and smiled again.

"Bye, you two," Adrian said, and left the room.

Amy paused a moment, then said, "There's nothing on TV. I'm going to get my book."

"Ok, sweetheart," I said. "We can read together." I held up the newspaper that the hotel staff had left in our room. Amy nodded, went into her room, and came back moments later clutching her book.

For a while, the two of us sat together in companionable silence. We could occasionally hear the sound of Violet singing to herself in the jacuzzi, and when we did, we'd glance at each other and smile. Other than that, we read in peace. I sipped room service coffee and nibbled on fruit at the round table while I read the paper. I was scanning, as always, for strange attacks that were probably the work of Strigoi. Old habits die hard, it seemed.

Then Amy spoke. "Mom?" she said, her voice oddly loud in the otherwise silent room.

"Yes, honey," I said, absentmindedly, and turned the page.

"Mommy," she said, more loudly. I looked up and realized she had come over to me on her silent little feet.

"What's wrong, sweetheart?" I asked, and gestured for her to sit down with me.

She sat down and took a piece of cheese from the tray. "Nothing," she said.

I looked at her carefully. I might not have been able to see her aura, but I still knew my daughter's moods. "Tell me," I said, gently. "It's ok."

She began running her fingers through her hair, combing through a few snags. "I was just wondering something," she said.

"What is it?"

She looked down at the carpet. "Is Adrian my dad?" she asked, in a tight whisper.

I felt like the wind had been knocked out of me. But the last thing I wanted was for Amy to pick up on my discomfort. "Amy," I said, in the most normal voice I could manage. "Baby. I..." And I found that words failed me.

"Because everyone thinks he is," Amy continued, still staring at the floor. "All these people. Like the guy who brought the coffee yesterday morning – you weren't awake yet. Also, the mean lady at the house day-before-yesterday, the one who called me that weird word, 'damp ear,' or whatever. And the lady at the ice cream shop, at Christmas time. Everyone. All these people. And I wondered why but then..." She looked up at me. "Just before, when I saw him and me in the mirror at the same time, I noticed it. Our faces... We're like, the same. Kind of."

"Your eyes," I said, before I knew what I was going to say.

"And if you knew him from before, maybe you were in love or something, and maybe... I mean, Dad said he isn't my dad, so someone has to be. So is it Adrian? Please say he is, Mommy." Tears flooded the familiar green eyes. "_Please_ say he is."

"He is," I said, trying to draw her closer. "He is, baby. And I'm so sorry I didn't tell you before."

She pushed me away so she could look me in the eye. "Does he want to be?" she asked. "I mean, does he want to be like, a dad?" She swallowed heavily. "If he's my dad will he start acting different and say that turtles are dirty and that I didn't try hard enough even when I did my best..." She sniffed.

"He won't," I said. "He's not that kind of person."

"Dad used to be nice to me," she said. "I mean, Mr. Reznick. He used to be nice and then he changed."

"Adrian isn't like that. He hasn't changed how he felt about me in ten years, and I'm sure he won't change how he feels about you. He's been wanting to tell you this whole time about who he is but I thought you'd be upset and..."

"Does he really like me?" she asked.

"Of course he does," I said. "He loves you. Who wouldn't love you?"

"Dad – Mr. Reznick – he didn't like me," she whispered. "He hates me."

"That's his loss," I said. "You're my baby and I love you and so does Adrian."

I expected her to roll her eyes like she often did lately when I expressed affection, but instead she fell into my arms and started to cry. I squeezed her tight as she sobbed. I guess that at some level she knew she was safe now to let it out – all the fear and sadness she'd been feeling, not just for the last weekend, but for years and years. Up until now, she'd had a fake father who hated her, and she'd had to toughen up to survive. Now she had a real father who loved her, and I hoped that she would let herself relax and just be a little elementary school kid again, instead of a pre-teen in battle armor. There were still some long conversations to come, but we were through the hardest part, now. Maybe I could relax a little, too.

I barely noticed the sound of the room door opening, but then Adrian's soft voice startled both of us. "What's wrong here?" he said. "Can I help?

"Hi," said Amy, suddenly as shy as her little sister. She tried to smile, though there were tears still on her cheeks.

Adrian looked at me quizzically and got a little closer.

"She figured it out," I said, softly.

"Oh," said Adrian. He reached over to Amy and wiped off a few of her tears with his thumb. "Well. Hi," he said.

"Hi," she said again.

"This isn't awkward at all," Adrian said, and laughed. "Come here, A-mazing. Give your dad a hug, kiddo."

Hesitantly, she reached out to him. He put his arms around her and lifted her off the ground, then swung her around in a circle. She began giggling like mad, and then he began laughing too. When he put her down, she was dizzy, and she reached out to hug him to steady herself.

"Oh my gosh," Amy said, grinning. "I can't wait to tell Violet."

"What?" I said, taken aback.

"She'll be so happy," Amy said, turning to me and smiling as wide as I'd ever seen her smile. "She hates Mr. Reznick too. She'll be so glad to find out Adrian is our dad instead."

Adrian and I exchanged glances.

"Honey," I said. "Adrian's your dad, but... he's not Violet's."

The smile disappeared from Amy's face. "What?" she whispered.

"She's still your sister," I said, getting down on my knees so I'd be right by her. "She's my daughter, just like you are. But she has a different dad."

"Mr. Reznick," Amy said, disgusted.

"Yes," I said. "But she's still your sister. Technically, she's your half-sister, I guess, but..."

"I don't want her to be my half-sister," Amy said, her lower lip trembling a little. "I want her to be my normal sister."

"Hey, nobody's more normal around here than Violet," Adrian said. "I think she's the least weird of all of us."

Amy smiled very faintly at his joke, but only very faintly.

"The thing that counts is that you love each other," I said. "That's the main thing. She'll always be your sister."

"Let's not tell her," Amy whispered. "About Adrian being my dad, I mean. It'll just make her sad."

"We'll have to tell her sometime," I said, wiping a few more of her tears away. "But maybe not right now. Let's get used to all the new things first."

Amy nodded. "Meantime, I'll be extra nice to her," she said. "So that when she finds out, she won't be so sad."

"That's a good idea," I said.

Amy started to reply, but the door from the girls' room opened and Violet came out, wearing a bathrobe that would have been roomy even on Adrian. She had wrapped it around herself almost two times, like an ace bandage, and it was trailing on the floor behind her at least two feet. She had a book in her hand, and I could see that only one corner showed signs of having been dipped in the bathwater - a personal best for Violet. "Hi, everybody," she said. "I'm hungry. Can we have dinner soon?"

"I'm hungry too," Amy said, immediately. "We should definitely have dinner soon."

"As soon as you're ready, we can go," I said.

"Come on," Amy said, and took her little sister's hand. "Do you want me help you get ready for dinner? I can brush your hair for you."

This was a dream come true for Violet, and she nodded enthusiastically.

"Here," I said, reaching out for the book. "I'll fix it."

"Thanks, Mommy," Violet said, handing over the damp book, and then went off with her sister to get dressed.

Once the door was closed, Adrian and I sat down heavily on the couch, and I leaned my head on his shoulder wearily.

"Man," Adrian said. "Wow." He took the book from me and began peeling the damp pages apart.

"Yeah..."

He sighed heavily. "I somehow thought it'd be more difficult than that," he said.

"There's still plenty of difficult stuff to come," I murmured. "I mean, we still have to explain about the existence of Moroi and dhampirs, and get two little girls used to the idea of living with a vampire."

"There's that," Adrian said. "They haven't read Twilight or anything, have they?" He stoked the damp pages with his fingertip, and a thin curl of steam rose into the air. He was using his fire power to dry the page, I realized.

"God no," I said. "What kind of mother do you think I am?"

Adrian grinned. "Good," he said. "I wouldn't want to try to explain why I don't sparkle."

I sighed. "I think it's going to be even harder to explain to Violet why her older sister gets a brand new shiny handsome dad, while she's stuck with..."

"While she's stuck with Asshole of the Year for her sperm donor?" Adrian supplied.

"I probably wouldn't use those words," I said. "But yes, more or less."

"It'll be okay," he said, kissing my forehead. "She's a tough little thing, just like her mom. And what does it really matter who donated the sperm? What did you say – the most important thing is that we love each other?"

"I hope I was right," I said.

"I'm sure you were," he said. "And really, I think it won't matter in the long run. I mean, neither of _us_ is particularly nuts about our own father, right? So what does it matter?" He paused to think, his fingers still running over the damp corner of Violet's book. "You know, the only person I know who actually gets along with their dad is Rose, oddly enough. Christian's dad went Strigoi. Lissa's dad cheated on her mom before he was killed. Eddie never even met his dad..."

"I guess we all make the families we wish we had," I said.

"Hmm," Adrian said, and I could tell that what I'd said had struck him in some way. "You might be right, Sage. Look at Belikov. His dad was downright abusive, and I can't think of a better dad, really. And Christian spends his life making sure that he is the opposite of his parents..."

"What about Eddie?" I asked. "Did he and Jill ever have any kids? Or... were they even together that long?"

Adrian sighed. "They were together for years, but no, no kids." He shrugged. "I think that he and Jill needed to figure stuff out on their own first," he said. "I don't know. She took it pretty hard when Sonya figured out how to close the bond between us..."

"When was that?"

"A few years ago," Adrian said. "She'd been all in favor of it until it happened. Then after, she sort of shut down for a few months. Rose said that she understood – the bond was like having an escape hatch in your own mind, a place you could go to escape your own feelings when they got to be too much. Maybe she'd been relying on me too much."

"But that was a few years ago," I said. "Is she ok now?"

"Last time I checked, she was doing ok, though the stress of her modeling career wasn't exactly ideal for her, or for her relationship with Eddie." Adrian kissed me again. "But who can predict the future?" he said. "As much as I wanted to think I'd get you back someday, I didn't actually think it would happen, and happily, I was really wrong there! I guess we should add clairvoyance to the short list of skills I don't have."

"It's a very short list," I said, smiling.

"Later on tonight, I can show you some of the many skills I _do_ have," Adrian said.

I hit him on the arm. "Hush," I said, still smiling.

He wiggled his eyebrows at me. "Anyway," he said. "The point is... Shit, Sydney, I forget what the point is. I'm all distracted now..."

"The point is Amy and Violet," I said.

"Yeah," he said, serious again. "They'll be fine, Sydney." He held up Violet's book, which was dry now, as if it proved his point.

"You just said you can't see the future," I said.

"True, but I can make things happen," Adrian said. "I'm good at making people happy. And right now, I think the thing to make us all happy is some upscale comfort food."

"Upscale... comfort food...?" I repeated. The two didn't seem to go together.

"Yeah," he said. "Go check on the girls and I'll make the reservation."

We stood up from the couch and I gave Adrian a quick peck on the cheek. "I love you," I murmured.

"I love you, too," he said, and turned to go get his cell phone from his coat, which was hanging by the door.

I went to the door to the girls' room, but then paused with my hand on the knob. "Adrian?"

"Hmm?"

"Are we... the girls and I, I mean … are _we_ the family you wish you had?"

He gave me a sad smile. "You weren't the only one who needed rescuing, Sydney," he said.

I nodded, thinking of the lonely king from his story, and went to check on the girls.

* * *

The place Adrian had picked out for us to have dinner at was called Lincoln. It featured a floor made out of pennies, an idea that I'd heard of once before but seemed particularly appropriate for a "Lincoln" themed restaurant. A bunch of empty mason jars hung from the ceiling, and there were huge comfy couches to sit on. We ordered plates of upscale comfort food to share – macaroni and cheese still sizzling in a pan, tater tots, burgers, and chicken fingers. Afterward, we ordered a dessert sampler, and Amy insisted that Violet get first pick from the tray. All in all, it was a great night. I loved that Adrian had found a place where the girls would be comfortable, but that was still special.

After dinner, we went back to the hotel. I got the girls ready to go to sleep and then Adrian joined us and we again read a chapter from Harry Potter. Then Amy went to her own bed, and Adrian and I kissed both girls goodnight and turned the lights down very low.

"Well," Adrian said softly, once we were back out in the living room. "The girls are settled into bed – should we go, too?"

I caught his eye. "Yes," I said, suddenly feeling like the room's air supply had run thin. "Let's go."

"Hey," he said, noting my expression. "No worries, Sydney. I know it's been a stressful few days. We'll just see what happens, ok?"

"Ok," I said. It was silly to be nervous after everything else that had happened, but I was.

We went into our room together and took turns showering and getting ready for bed. Then I climbed into one of the huge beds with him, and he leaned over to kiss me on the cheek. I had one of those strange moments when reality comes crashing in – one of those moments when you suddenly become aware of exactly where you are and what's happening. "I'm alone with Adrian," I thought to myself. "I'm away from Rick for good. Amy and Violet are safe and _I'm with Adrian_."

"Hey," Adrian said. "What's that look on your face?"

I shook my head. "Just amazed at how much has happened in 48 hours."

He paused. "I can sleep in the other bed, if you want me to," he said, uncertainly.

"Oh, don't be ridiculous," I said, and pulled him into a kiss. "But you're sweet to offer."

"Not that sweet," he said. "I was pretty sure you'd say no." He kissed my neck softly. He knew what it did to me when he did that. "I know that you're technically still married until that awful notary public files the papers on Monday morning, but..."

"Shh," I said, and kissed him. "I have a commitment to you that has always been more important than my so-called marriage."

"Oh yeah?" he whispered. "What's that?"

"You're the one I actually love," I said. "Always have been."

He drew in a shaky breath. "Sydney," he whispered. "Come closer."

I closed the small distance between us, and soon found that even the tank top and shorts I'd had on were too much of a barrier between us. Soon my clothes – and Adrian's – were decorating the otherwise immaculate hotel floor. His hands explored me, and I let my fingertips run across his body, too, amazed at how clear my memories were of the last time we were together, and at how similar the reality was to my daydreams. It was if our bodies remembered each other, despite the many years that had passed since we were last naked together – as if skin remembered skin.

It had been so long since he'd last touched me like this in real life, not a dream, and an equal length of time since I'd felt anyone really touching me with such passion and tenderness. When I let out a little moan, I bit down on his shoulder hard, not wanting to wake up the girls.

"Be as loud as you want," he breathed. "This hotel is Moroi friendly, as I told you, and this is the master bedroom - which means that our room is soundproofed."

As it turned out, that was a _very_ good thing.

_Another A/N: _

_Hey, guys! Still a couple more chapters to go – now I'm thinking maybe 22 will be the last one – because there are still some loose ends I want to tie up. Yes, they have to tell Violet the awful truth :( but I already have a draft of that scene and I think you'll like it. _

_If you're wondering, the Willard is a real place in DC, as is the Lincoln restaurant. I actually went down to DC this weekend to visit a friend / remember DC and do some location scouting, and we went into the Willard to check it out. There really, really, really was a harpist playing Stairway to Heaven. I just about died. Heh. But I'm thinking that I'll have to set my next story somewhere more glamorous and do some location scouting there...  
_

_On a different note... To those of you who don't like Amy, I'm actually kind of flattered that my characters cause you to have any emotional reaction at all, but maybe you could cut her a little slack. She's 9 years old and she's been through hell for years, for heaven's sake! And, as Sydney says, she's my baby and I love her, even if you don't. Besides, if you haven't yet, you might want to read a blog post (not something I wrote) about finding female characters annoying. I can't link to it here, but google "To Anyone Annoyed By A Woman: An Open Letter Leupagus" You'll probably find Cassandra Clare's tumblr post about it, and you can go to the original post from there. No offense, of course. You're welcome to your own opinions! :)  
_

_And as always, reviews are appreciated! :)_

_And thanks to **Nevertofeel** for correcting my crappy geography!_


	19. Early Morning Tears

**Chapter 19: Early Morning Tears**

I woke up with Adrian wound around me like a tangled blanket. For a while, I luxuriated in the feel of his body against mine as I dozed, timing my breathing with his. We had drawn the blackout curtains, and they were so effective that I had no idea what time it was. But my body started to tell me that it was caffeine time, and _that_ was a need I couldn't put off for too much longer.

When I couldn't wait any more, I snuck out of bed, put a hotel bathrobe on over my underwear and bra, and went out into the living room, disappointed at the gray, rainy scene outside the window. I called down for room service, and all I had to do was mention my suite number and the grumpy sounding worker said, "Coffee, ma'am?"

"Yes, please," I answered. "And um, some fruit or something..."

"Yes, ma'am," he said, and added, without a trace of sarcasm, "I'll send up some fruit or something."

I didn't have to wait long before there was a polite knock on the door. I signed for the food and tipped the waiter, and was just about to pour a cup for myself when the door to the girls' room opened and Violet came out. She was wearing Adrian's sweater, the one he had lent to Amy the other day after the fire, and on her it had become a knee-length dress. Her eyes were red and swollen and her cheeks were wet.

I held out my arms to her and she ran over to me, and we sat down on the couch together, cuddled up in a little ball. I wasn't sure what was wrong, but that was only because there were too many possibilities. So for a while, I just sat with her, as we both listened to the rain against the window.

"I had a bad dream," she whispered, after a few minutes.

"Oh?" I said, encouragingly.

"I was president, but Daddy came to yell and hold up a mean sign and say I was a bad president and I should be peached."

"Peached?" I repeated.

"You know, when a president is bad, they peach them," she said, and sniffed.

"Right," I said, not wanting to correct her. "What then?"

"Then the White House was burning down and I tried to escape but I couldn't. And Daddy was there with everyone throwing peaches at me..."

"It sounds scary," I said.

"It was," she said, and burst into tears again.

I held her close, feeling a little guilty. I'd been so happy with Adrian for the last 24 hours or so that I had almost forgotten what a horrible time we'd all gone through. It was foolish to think that my girls could have escaped without some lingering effects. For right now, I had to fight the impulse to just distract her sadness away with TV or food. Distracting the bad emotions away never changed things for me, and it wouldn't for her. So I held her and let her cry. "It's ok to be sad," I whispered. "It's been a sad few days. Things will be better after this, though."

"I know," she said, and sniffed. "But I'm still sad now."

"That's ok," I said. "I'm here." For a few more minutes, I just held her close while she cried. I stroked her back, humming that little song that you seem to learn the minute you first hold a baby, and never forget, even when your baby is almost four feet tall. I tried not to think about how good the coffee smelled. Some things were more important than coffee.

After a few minutes, I heard the sound of a door opening and looked up to see Adrian peeking out of our room. He hadn't tied his bathrobe properly, so I could see his boxers and bare chest, and he looked mostly asleep. In fact, his right eye was open only a tiny slit, and his left eye was still completely shut. He closed the door behind him quietly and came closer to the couch, holding open his left eye with his thumb and forefinger. When he seemed to take in what was going on, his expression changed from confusion to concern.

I made a "shh" gesture at him and he nodded. He fetched a box of tissues from another table and put it down next to me, and I smiled my thanks as I took a tissue and wiped away some of Violet's tears. When I was done, I looked up in surprise to see that Adrian had poured me a cup of coffee and put it down on the small end table near me. Still rocking Violet gently back and forth, I gulped down the coffee, and my caffeine addicted cells rejoiced. Then I refocused on Violet, whose sobs seemed to be slowing down now. "Violet, Violet, Violet, my wonderful Violet," I sang in that tuneless little song. "Everything will be ok."

Adrian, meanwhile, had disappeared temporarily, but soon emerged from our room in jeans and a t-shirt. He tapped his wrist where a watch should be, then held up his hand, fingers spread – the "five minutes" gesture. I nodded, and watched him slip out into the hall, still in bare feet. A few minutes later, he returned, holding a thermos. I looked at him, a question on my face, and he gestured to Violet and made a drinking motion with the thermos. I nodded.

Violet was more or less cried out by then, and she looked up when Adrian sat down on the couch near us. "H-h-hi, M-m-mister Adrian," she stammered, her chest still heaving a little.

"Hi, Miss Purple," he said. "I got some cocoa. Do you want some?"

"Y-yes please," she said.

He poured out two cups of cocoa, one for her and one for himself, and brought it all over on a tray and sat down with us on the couch. "We should wait a minute," he said. "It's still really hot."

"You're having some too?" Violet asked, and sniffed.

"Well, yeah," he said. "I had a bad dream. I thought some cocoa would cheer me up."

"You had a bad dream?" she said, looking at him intensely. "Me too!"

"Oh," he said, gently. "What bad luck!" He made a face. "Mine was pretty scary," he said.

Violet immediately turned to him and put her little arms around him as best she could. "It was only a dream, Mr. Adrian," she said. "Don't worry."

"I know," he said, hugging her back. "But it seemed very real."

"What was _your_ dream about, Mr. Adrian?"

"Big, mean monsters," he said, immediately.

"That sounds scary," Violet said, and sniffed again. I handed her a tissue. "Mine was about Daddy."

"That sounds scary, too," Adrian said, and squeezed her. Then he looked at me, clearly looking for guidance.

"How do you feel now, baby?" I asked.

She sniffed. "My eyes hurt," she said.

"Close your eyes," Adrian said, and when she did, he lightly touched each of her closed eyelids. Immediately, they looked less red and swollen. "There," he said. "All better."

"Thanks," she said, and sniffed again. "That's nice of you, Mr. Adrian." She took her cup of cocoa and sipped at it carefully.

"Happy to help, Miss Purple," Adrian said, and took a sip of his cocoa too.

"Next time you have a bad dream, you can come to me," she told him. "I can give you a hug."

"Awww," Adrian said, clearly touched. "That's the best offer I had in a while. Thanks, Miss Purple."

"Do you feel ok now?" I asked Violet.

"I think so," she said.

"Just ok?" Adrian said. "Just ok?" Then he picked her up in his arms and spun her around the room. She began giggling madly. He zoomed her around the room, spinning and weaving, as they both laughed. I sneaked a sip of Adrian's cocoa – it was really good. Then, once they were both dizzy, they sat back down on the couch.

Violet's eyes were shining with happiness. "Do that again," she said.

"I can't right now," he said. "I'm too tired. But later for sure." He gave her a kiss on the forehead, and she nodded. "By the way," he added. "I like this dress. Where did you find it?"

She giggled again and looked down at the sweater of his that she was wearing. "It was on the floor," she said.

"Well, it looks nice on you," he said. "You can keep it."

She giggled again. "Ok," she said. Then, turning to me, she announced, "I'm very hungry, Mommy."

Of course, breakfast was Mommy's job. "We can order breakfast and eat up here in the room," I suggested.

"Can they make pancakes?" she asked.

"They can make anything you want," Adrian said, and pressed a few buttons on his phone and handed it to her. "Just tell them what you want to eat and they'll make it."

She nodded and took the phone. "Hello?" she said. "Yes, this is Violet Reznick. I'm in the suite with... right. Ok, can I have some food please? I want some Honey Nut Cheerios, and milk, and I want one round fried egg with no yucky parts, please. And an English muffin with no burnt parts. And cream cheese for the English muffin. And small blueberry pancakes and honey, not maple syrup. And some bacon, please. Thank you." She handed the phone to Adrian, who confirmed the room number and the order while Violet went into her room to get dressed.

"Is she really going to eat all that?" he asked, grabbing the tray of fruit from the cart and bringing it to the table by the couch.

I shrugged and picked up a piece of melon. "She usually wakes up starving," I said.

He grinned. "A kid after my own heart," he said, and popped a strawberry slice in his mouth. Then his smile faded as he asked, "So, she had a nightmare?"

I summarized her dream as we ate some more of the fruit, and though we smiled a little about the "throwing peaches" stuff, we agreed that her dream had probably been very scary for her. Adrian shook his head. "Poor kid," he said. "We'll have to keep her mind off of it."

"Maybe," I said. "But sometimes it's good to face things, too. I mean, me pretending for ten years that I didn't care about you didn't make the feelings go away."

"You have a point," Adrian said. "That's why you're the mom – the hot mom, might I add – and I'm just the trophy boyfriend."

I noticed his gaze traveling down to the opening on my bathrobe, and I got up from the couch. "I'm going to get dressed before this degenerates," I said.

"Do you need any help?" Adrian said, still staring at my cleavage. "Maybe with fastening or unfastening your bra?"

"I think I'll manage," I said, dryly. But then on an impulse I flashed him for just a second before I turned toward our room.

"Oh, no you don't," Adrian said, and followed me, closing the door behind us. I yelped a little as he tackled me playfully, knocking me down on one of the beds – the one we hadn't slept in. As I giggled and fake-protested, he opened my robe and kissed my cleavage, then kissed my stomach loudly.

"Hey," I said. "That tickles!"

"Does it?" he asked, and moved up to kiss my neck instead. His playfulness was gone, replaced suddenly by passion.

As he kissed me, I fell almost limp with pleasure, and let out a soft sigh. Not five minutes ago I had been holding a crying child. Now my entire mind, body, and spirit were tuned to a completely different frequency. I was starting to become almost as mercurial as Adrian was. "We can't do this right now," I said. I tried to will myself to pull away, but somehow only just tightened my hold on him. My fingers, as if of their own accord, began pulling at his shirt so that I could touch the bare skin of his back. "The girls might both be awake," I said, trying to convince myself as much as him. "Violet might be wondering where we are."

"Violet's fine right now," Adrian said, near my ear. "And we can be done before anyone misses us."

"Violet _is_ really slow at getting dressed," I mused, as he continued to kiss my neck. "But who'll sign for the food?"

"The room service guy said it'd be about fifteen minutes," Adrian whispered. "So we still have at least ten."

"We can't... do _that_... so quickly."

"I like a challenge," he growled, and unhooked my bra.

"Hang on," I whispered, and got out of bed only long enough to grab a condom and make sure the door was locked. "Shouldn't we … you know, go to the other bed?" I said, as I let Adrian pull me back down onto the tightly made bed.

"Let's give the housekeepers something to think about," he said.

* * *

After a very quick shower, I emerged from the bedroom, clean and dressed. Adrian was sitting at the table by the window in a pair of jeans and t-shirt, looking for all the world as if he hadn't just been involved in a gold-medal winning Olympic sex event ten minutes ago. I gave him a demure kiss on the cheek and sat down next to him at the table, where Violet's food was waiting for her. Naturally, she was still in her room getting dressed – though in all likelihood she was probably daydreaming about her book, or giggling about a joke so private that only she got it.

"I signed for the food," Adrian said. "Hope Violet comes out soon or it'll get cold."

"She will," I said. "She's hungry. Actually, now I'm starting to get hungry, too."

"I could eat," Adrian said, musing.

"Food, or...?" I trailed off, feeling a little uncomfortable.

"Food," Adrian said. "I'll get... you know, the other thing... later tonight, out in Philly. My feeder's scheduled to come by at 10 tonight."

"Ok," I said, trying to process the idea of the feeder coming to his house. I knew that this would be the way of it for a while, and at 10 o'clock the girls would be in bed. I could deal with it. I took a deep breath then returned to the present moment. "We should all order in for breakfast," I said. "And when we're done, we should just head to your place in Philly, since sight-seeing is out." I glanced out the window at the trails of rain running down the glass.

"I'm actually kind of excited for you guys to see to my place," Adrian said. "I did some redecorating."

"How did you have time?" I asked.

He shrugged. "I hire good help," he said. "Anyway, I was thinking – do you think the girls would like to go to Philly by train? I can try to arrange for a private car with a living room setup – a sleeper car, but arranged for daytime – if you think the girls would like that."

"They'd love that," I said. "Very Harry Potter, somehow." I paused to think. "Gosh, I can't remember the last time I took a train with a sleeper compartment." But I did remember. It had been in Russia, all those years ago, when I'd first met Rose. I had no idea then how greatly she – and her sort-of boyfriend – would be figuring in my life from then on.

"We should get two rooms on the train," Adrian said, mischievously. "One for the girls, and one for you and me." He winked. "Want to join the Two-Rail Club?"

"Is that like the Mile-High Club, but for trains?"

"You got it," Adrian said.

I paused. "Did you just make up that term, like, right now?"

"Yep," he said, and grinned. "Doesn't make it a bad idea, though."

I hit him on the arm lightly. "Get your mind out of the gutter."

"I could tell you the same thing," he said, with a wicked smile. "You should see your aura right now."

"Not fair," I said. "Not fair at all."

"No," he said, and handed me the room service menu. "Do you know what you're going to order?"

I sighed and took the menu from his outstretched hands. As I started to scan the list of the options, Amy and Violet emerged from their room. Violet attacked her food in her deliberate way, while Amy rubbed her eyes and said, "Can I have pancakes too?"

After the big revelation from the night before, I was expecting some sort of awkwardness between Amy and Adrian, but there wasn't any. She seemed the same as ever, as did Adrian. Amy gave each of us a hug and sat down at the table next to Violet, and we all placed our orders. Both girls giggled through most of the meal as Adrian made funny faces at both of them, and he claimed a victory anytime he made either of them accidentally spit out food from laughing. A little part of me worried that someone would choke, and then I just relaxed and enjoyed the sound of my daughters laughing.

When we were done eating, we got cleaned up and dressed, and then packed up our stuff to check out. A bell-hop came to take our suitcases and I looked around the room regretfully. It was by far the nicest hotel room I'd ever stayed in, even including some of the fancy places the alchemists had sprung for in Moscow. The suite here had been a safe place for me and my daughters at a rough time, and I felt oddly loathe to leave it. But I knew that small goodbyes like this were part of life. I waved at the empty room and closed the door behind us.

The train trip to Philly was a lot of fun. Adrian had somehow gotten Amtrak to add a bedroom car to their usual commuter train – a private jet would probably have been cheaper than whatever he paid for this privilege – and we had a "family bedroom suite" to ourselves. It took up the entire end of the train so that it actually had windows on both sides of the car, and it was big enough that we could pull down one of the beds for the girls to climb up into for part of the journey without forcing Adrian and me to duck.

Violet lay on her berth and gazed out of the window for most of the journey, her book open in front of her. Amy sat in the armchair by the window and listened to Adrian's ipod, getting up occasionally to dance to the music that only she could hear. I was jealous of how uninhibited she was – I couldn't imagine just dancing like that, even when I was alone with just family. Adrian and I, meanwhile, talked a little while about nothing in particular, and then he lay down with his head on my lap and fell asleep. I stroked his hair, glad that he'd stopped putting quite so much product in it over the years, and looked out of the window, watching as the rainstorm drifted away to the south.

A limo met us at the train station – of course – and we drove over to Adrian's apartment building. The girls had a great time calling the driver on the little phone, raising and lowering the windows, and just generally being silly. While they were occupied, I leaned close to Adrian and said, "We're not... like... moving in with you forever, or anything. We're just going to stay until we find another place."

"Fair enough," Adrian said, calmly. "I'll just have to treat you so good you'll never want to leave." He gave me one of those disarming smiles and mixed me up a juice spritzer from drinks in the cooler in the armrest.

When we arrived at Adrian's building, a doorman came out to help us with our suitcases, and the front desk clerk smilingly informed Adrian that "everything had been taken care of." I looked at Adrian, hoping for an explanation, but he just grinned that maddening grin of his and I knew I'd have to wait to find out.

His apartment turned out to be on the top floor – of course – and we made our way up on the elevator. Adrian opened the door with a flourish, and we walked into the main room of his apartment. The room was shaped sort of like a backwards capital L, with a living room area to the left and a combination kitchen/dining room straight ahead. Two hallways led off the living room area, one to the left and one to the right. There was a faint, but noticeable, smell of paint and sawdust in the air.

Adrian took our coats and hung them up as the doorman deposited our suitcases, and the girls and I looked around the living room. Violet grabbed my hand tightly, her eyes wide, as we all took in the impressive array of electronics, including a 3D television, an array of video game consoles, and professional looking speakers. A huge sectional sofa – black leather, of course – looked to me like the place where Adrian spent most of his time, and a few empty Starbucks cups on the coffee table bore witness to that. There was a portrait of me on the wall near the couch, and Amy and Violet spotted it immediately. When they found out that Adrian had painted it, their opinion of him grew even higher.

"Do you girls want the tour?" Adrian asked, after he'd tipped the doorman. Amy jumped up and down saying "Yay! A tour!" while Violet nodded so quickly I thought she might hurt her neck.

Adrian guided us down the hallway to the left, which turned out to lead to two bedrooms and a bathroom. A quick peek into each bedroom made it pretty clear that Adrian had had a lot of things "taken care of" – he had, in fact, arranged for both rooms to be completely redecorated for the girls.

One bedroom featured freshly painted pale purple walls, and scattered around the room were several large cardboard boxes, all of which read "VIOLET" in thick letters. There was an old-fashioned looking four-poster bed, a cozy rocking chair, and a large pillow-covered window seat occupied a huge bay window. Purple fairy lights had been hung around the head of the bed, as well as by the window seat. Violet ran into the room and picked up a houseplant that rested on a small table by a window. "It's a _violet_," she said, holding it up. "It's a violet for _me_."

"Of course," Adrian said. "This used to be my studio, and kind of boring, so I had them paint it purple for you. Do you like the color?" Violet nodded in wordless delight. "And they put in the window seat and stuff," he added. "So you'd have a place to read. If you hate the furniture, we can get different stuff, but I thought you'd like this style."

"I love it," she whispered. "It's my favorite." She ran and threw her arms around his waist, and he laughed, stroking her hair affectionately.

After we'd explored her room a little, we went into the other bedroom, which had up until recently been a guest bedroom. The cardboard boxes scattered around didn't diminish the overall effect – Adrian had had it decorated exactly to Amy's taste, with clean, modern looking furniture made out of blond wood. Her bedspread was bright green, and a large, bright blue throw rug covered the hardwood floors. The curtains were polka-dotted, featuring all the colors of the rainbow. A proud, stately red flower grew from a red pot on the windowsill, and Amy recognized it as an amaryllis.

"And what's this?" Amy asked, approaching a small set of stairs in the corner of the room which appeared to lead to a raised platform.

"It's for reading," Adrian said. "It's a pillow pit."

Violet and I went over to look, too. We climbed up the three stairs, then went down two steps into the pit. It was a little like getting into a hot tub, minus the water, of course. There were brightly colored pillows everywhere, and a shelf full of Amy's books decorated the wall.

"Oh, wow," Amy said, her eyes huge. "It's perfect."

"It's perfect," Violet repeated, sitting down on one of the pillows. "I like my reading place better, though."

Amy rolled her eyes, but then remembered that she was being on best behavior with her little sister, and said, "Yours is nice too." To Adrian, she added, "Thank you so much. For both of our rooms." Violet added her nodding agreement.

"I wanted you two girls to feel at home here," Adrian said, and put his arm around my waist. "So you'd never want to leave."

"We're not _leaving_, are we, Mommy?" Violet asked, in a stricken voice, as she and Amy climbed out of the pillow pit.

"No," I said. "We'll stay here for a while."

The girls cheered and began jumping on the bed in a show of delight. Rick hadn't allowed jumping on the bed, but Rick wasn't around anymore. So I let them jump.

"You're really going to stick around?" Adrian asked me, in a low voice, while the girls were jumping.

"Well, at this point, I can't exactly tell the girls no," I said. I paused. In the back of my head, I had thought that it would be a good idea for the girls and me to live on our own for a while. I didn't really want to just immediately move in with Adrian, going from a ten year marriage to another serious relationship in a matter of hours. On the other hand, I couldn't fathom moving out into another apartment and not waking up with Adrian every day. So far I'd only woken up in his arms once, but it was an experience I wanted to repeat every morning. "So, yeah," I said. "I guess we'll stay for a while. A long while."

Adrian rubbed his hands together, an evil smile on his face. "Then my plan is working," he said, sounding like a villain from a B-movie.

"So what did you do to redecorate in the master bedroom?" I asked. "Did you install a water feature or something?"

"Nope," he said, cheerfully. "But that sounds fun. Hell, you can redecorate it however you want. Within reason, of course."

"Of course."

"And, to sweeten the deal, I'll make you this promise: if we move into a new place, you get final say."

"A new place?" I repeated, stupidly.

"Well, maybe we'd want a place with a backyard," Adrian said. "I mean, this is a bachelor's apartment. What if we want more room someday?"

"Room for what?" I asked.

Adrian shrugged. "Whatever," he said, then turned to Amy and Violet. "Want to see the rest of your new home?" he asked them, and they answered with an enthusiastic "yes." So the tour recommenced. We took a perfunctory look into the bathroom, then went back down the hall, through the living room and down the other hall. This hall was a lot shorter and led to the master suite, which was complete with an adjoining bathroom and a walk-in closet. The girls weren't particularly interested in Adrian's bedroom, though they were interested in some of his paintings, which must have been moved into the bedroom from the studio. Adrian would need a new studio, I mused. That was no doubt what he meant by needing more space.

After the girls had peeked at a few of the paintings and the whirlpool bathtub in the master bath, they went back to their own rooms to begin to unpack. Once we were alone, Adrian pulled me close, gave me a quick kiss, and said, "I did do _one_ thing for you." He opened the door to the walk-in closet so that I could see that about a third of it had been cleared away. "See?" he said, as we both looked inside. "I made space for your clothes."

"Thanks," I said, hiding a smile. Naturally. My boyfriend was one of the only straight men on earth who would only be able to give me one-third of a huge walk-in closet.

"What?" he said. "What is that look?"

"Nothing," I said. "You're just... so... you."

"I assume that's a good thing?" he said.

"Very good," I said, and grabbed him by the waist and pulled him down to the bed. Maybe it was the stress of the day, or maybe it was the lingering scent of Adrian in the room – his cologne, his soap, his very essence – but I was feeling very much like I needed some kissing. Luckily, Adrian was happy to oblige. He usually was.

"Is this room soundproofed?" I asked him, as he kissed my neck.

"Of course," he said, between kisses. "Want to put it to the... mmmm... test?"

"Tonight," I said. "Unpack first, reward second."

"I deserve a reward right _now_," Adrian murmured, but sat up a little. "Fine, Sage," he said. "We'll be responsible."

I sat up as well and took a moment to straighten my clothes. I was just about to ask Adrian where my car was when a soft knock at the partially open door drew our attention.

"Are you guys kissing in there?" came the soft voice of Violet.

Adrian laughed loudly, and I shushed him. "No," I called, glad that I had stopped us in time. "Come on in, baby."

She opened the door and stepped inside. "Can me and Amy play the Holo-Wii, Mr. Adrian?" she asked.

"Of course," he said.

"After you've unpacked," I said. At that, Adrian rolled his eyes, reminding me so much of Amy that it was uncanny. "We'll unpack really fast and then relax and play games the whole rest of the night," I added. "Deal?"

Violet shot me a quick smile. She was especially pretty when she smiled like that. "Ok," she said.

So, we spent the next few hours getting unpacked. Amy, though normally pretty careless with her clothes, seemed to enjoy actually folding and putting things away in her brand new room, so much more to her taste than the princess-themed room that Rick had gotten her for her eighth birthday. Violet moved at her usual snail's pace, moving one item at a time from the boxes the drawers. I helped both of them once I was done with my own stuff, and so by 7 pm or so, we were more or less unpacked.

After that, we gathered in the living room to hang out and play Holo-Wii. Adrian ordered a pizza and we ate off of paper plates on the floor. When we'd played enough for the night, he put in an old DVD of one of the old Harry Potter movies – Adrian explained that he hated the recent remakes – and we all sat down to watch. Amy and Violet's eyes were wide with joy and excitement as they settled in to watch a movie that had once been forbidden to them. Adrian made us some popcorn in his full size popper – it looked like something you'd see at a state fair – and I let each girl have two cookies from his well stocked junk food cabinet.

There was a slight hitch in the evening, when Adrian's feeder showed up a little ahead of schedule. It turned out to be a middle-aged man, dressed neatly in a pair of slacks and a button up shirt, a scarf around his neck. The feeder's handler seemed surprised to see another human in the house, but was polite enough not to comment, especially not in front of the girls, who were raptly watching the movie. Adrian "met with" the feeder in the bedroom, which made me glad that the feeder wasn't a female. Then the feeder and handler left without the girls taking much note of either of them. Adrian sat down next to me, the only sign of his activity the slight flush to his face, and when he gave me a quick kiss I could smell toothpaste.

When the movie was over, the girls wanted to watch the next one in the series, and I made them the deal that they could watch for a while if they got ready for bed first. They grumbled only a little for formality's sake, but soon were back out in the living room, ready to join me and Adrian on the couch. To my surprise, Violet sat right down on Adrian's lap. She'd never done that with Rick, at least, not unprompted. Amy sat down between me and Adrian, leaning her head on his arm. He looked over at me, clearly surprised to be suddenly surrounded. I shook my head, smiling. I had a feeling he'd be getting used to it quickly.

Once we were cozy on the couch, the break-neck pace of the last couple days began to catch up with the girls. We were only fifteen or twenty minutes into the film when first Violet, then Amy, fell fast asleep. Adrian picked Violet up in his arms and carried her into her room, then came back for Amy, who woke up a little and grumbled, but let herself be tucked into bed and kissed goodnight.

"Wow," he breathed, as we returned to the living room. "That was so cool. Apparently, I'm as awesome at this dad stuff as I am at everything else I do."

I felt the side of my mouth quirk up in a smile. "I can think of something else you do pretty well," I said.

"What's that?" he asked softly, his face a study of innocence.

"Come on," I said, hitting the remote to turn off the movie. "Let me remind you." And I dragged him down the hall to the master bedroom – _our_ master bedroom.

"_Oh_," he said, as I unzipped his jeans. "You were talking about _sex_, huh?" He couldn't quite keep the grin off his face.

"Yes," I said. "Now take it off, vampire."

"Have I told you that I like it when you boss me around?" he said, as he pulled his shirt off over his head.

"Get on the bed," I said, and pushed him gently.

"Yes, ma'am," he said, pulling me down with him.

* * *

When we were done, we lay holding hands, both of us covered with a fine coat of sweat.

"Wow," said Adrian, drawing the word out as if it had eight or nine syllables. "Just... wow."

"Yeah," I said. "Wow." Then we lay in silence for a while.

"You know, after that night in Palm Springs, I didn't want to change my sheets," Adrian said then, breaking the silence. "They smelled like you. I wanted to keep the scent there."

I didn't say anything. There wasn't much to say to that.

"They got pretty smelly after a few months," he added. "Jill made me change them. She said they were grossing her out vicariously."

I started to laugh, and soon Adrian joined in and we both laughed and laughed – a relief of tension almost as powerful as our lovemaking had been.

"Well, now your bed will smell like me all the time," I said.

"Good," he said, and rolled over to lick me on the cheek. "You smell good. And taste good, too."

"Eww," I said. "That's my sweat you're licking."

"I don't mind," he said. "I like it." He pulled me closer, and we cuddled up under a sheet.

"Get used to sweat and tears and snot and stuff," I said. "It's part of being a parent."

"I can deal," he said, thoughtfully. "I guess. I mean..." He paused, then said, "Do you think I'll make an ok dad? I mean, I'm good at buying presents, making popcorn, that kind of thing. But I feel like there's more to it than that."

"All you really need to do is love her," I said.

"I do," he said. "Both of them."

I smiled and kissed his shoulder. "I'm glad," I said, though it seemed inadequate. "That's 90% of it right there. Love them, and try to do what's best for them because you love them. If you do that, you'll easily outdistance Rick."

"Yeah, well that's like outrunning a snail," Adrian said. "I don't want to just be better than Rick. I want to be... perfect."

"I don't think there _is_ a perfect," I said. "But as far as I can tell, you're doing ok. They loved you the minute they met you. You should have heard Amy yesterday. She asked me if you were her dad and practically begged me to say that you were."

"Really?" he said, surprised. "Wow. That's a pretty big compliment."

"And Violet would trade Rick in for you in a heartbeat," I added.

"Yeah," he said. "Too bad she kind of can't."

"Yes," I said. "It really is."

"I just want them both to be happy," he said.

"They will be," I said.

"And you too," he said.

"And you, as well," I answered.

"That's a done deal," he said, and gave me squeeze.

Since we were both starting to doze, we slipped on some clothes, so that we'd be ready if we had to get out of bed suddenly. Then we cuddled together and fell asleep.

It was always hard for me to sleep in an unfamiliar bed, and I woke up frequently during the night, each time not quite sure where I was, each time remembering the sequence of events that had brought me to Adrian's bed. Then I'd feel for him next to me, and find the reassuring warmth of his body. But the third or fourth time I woke up, Adrian wasn't there, and his side of the bed was cold.

My mind supplied a variety of horrible reasons that he might not be in bed, and I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep until I knew where he was. It was pitch dark in the bedroom, so with the help of my cell phone, found one of Adrian's hoodies to put on over my tank top and shorts, then went out into the hallway and on to the living room.

Adrian's room was fitted with blackout curtains, but his living room wasn't, and now I could see the gray light of pre-dawn seeping in through the windows. As my eyes adjusted to the dim light, I was able to just make out a strange shape on the couch. I got closer and saw that it was Adrian, lying slightly propped up against the arm of the couch, with his long legs stretched out over the cushions. He was holding what looked like a large pillow in his arms.

When I got close enough to kneel on the floor next to him, I could see what he was holding. It wasn't a pillow – it was Violet, wrapped in a blanket as if it were a custom made sleeping bag. Her eyes were swollen looking, and I could see the tear-stains on her face, but her expression was peaceful. Adrian had one arm around her, but the other one had fallen limp by his side. Both of them were fast asleep, and I wondered how long they'd been there.

Unable to resist, I pressed a light kiss on Adrian's forehead, and he opened his eyes and blinked at me. I knew that even this light was sufficient for him to see clearly, and I smiled at him.

"Hey," he whispered, smiling back.

"Hey," I whispered. "What's this?"

"I woke up and for some reason, I felt like I wanted to check on them," Adrian whispered. "It was weird, but I couldn't sleep until I knew they were ok."

I nodded. "I know the feeling."

"Once I was out of the soundproofing, I could hear her crying. I brought her out here, thinking maybe I'd make her cocoa, or that we could watch a movie together or something, I don't know. But she didn't want anything, and I didn't want to wake you up. So I figured I'd sort of just hang out with her. She was cold so I gave her a blanket, and then... I don't know, she stopped crying, and we fell asleep."

"What was wrong?" I asked.

He shook his head a little. "She didn't really say," he said. "Just that she was sad."

I looked down at the sleeping girl. Some of her hair had stuck to her tear-stained cheeks, and I softly brushed it away. "Let's put her back to bed," I whispered. "It's almost morning anyway."

He nodded, and got to his feet as carefully as he could so as not to jostle her. Then he lifted her up gently and brought her to her bed, unwrapping the throw blanket from around her body and spreading it over her instead. We both looked down at her for a moment, making sure she was still asleep, before we slipped back out into the hall.

We were walking through the living room when Adrian turned around, hearing something that I couldn't. I turned around too and could just make out a shape that I knew had to be Amy. She must have heard us in the hall and come out to investigate. Maybe Adrian should put soundproofing on Amy's room, as well, I mused.

Adrian said something so quietly that I couldn't make it out even though I was right beside him, and Amy drew closer to us. Adrian knelt down next to her and gave her a quick hug and a kiss on the cheek. They appeared to be having a conversation, though I couldn't hear a word they were saying. Then she drew away from him and whispered, loud enough for me to hear, "Good night, Mom."

"Good night, sweetheart," I said, as quietly as I could, and bent down to hug her as well before we all returned to our own rooms.

"So," I said, once we had gotten back into Adrian's big bed. "What were you two whispering about?"

"She just wanted to know if Violet was ok," Adrian said. "I told her that she had been crying again, but that she was ok now. Amy said she'd listen for her, and if she started to cry again, she'd go in to cheer her up."

I smiled. "She's such a great kid," I mused.

"She is," he said, a note of pride in his voice.

"What was wrong with Violet, exactly?" I asked, as I lay my head on Adrian's chest.

"She just said she was sad," Adrian said, putting his arm around me. "I don't really know. She said something about her mean daddy, but that was all I really got out of her. I'm not sure she was 100% awake." He sighed. "I tried to bribe her with cocoa or cookies, but she didn't want any. And I told her I'd take her shopping in the morning and buy her whatever she wanted, but she just said 'no thank you, Mr. Adrian,' and kept right on crying."

I smiled a little despite myself, picturing Adrian's bumbling attempts to pacify her. "Even the thought of getting new books didn't work?" I asked.

"No," he said. "That was the first thing I thought of, trust me. So I gave up on the bribes and I did what you were doing this morning."

"Which was what?" I asked.

"I sort of cuddled her until she stopped crying," he said. He kissed the top of my head. "Did I do it right?" he asked. "I mean, it took her a while to stop crying. I felt bad."

"You did great," I said. "Perfect. I still want to talk to her tomorrow, try to figure out exactly what's wrong. But I'm really glad you were here for her tonight."

"Well of course," Adrian said, sounding slightly injured. "I wasn't going to let her cry by herself in her room."

"Rick would have," I said. "Or he would have woken me up to deal with it – not that I mind, but..."

"I get it," Adrian said. "It's like, you're a dad, dude. Do your job."

"Exactly," I said, then paused before I added, "Sorry I keep mentioning Rick. I don't know why I keep doing that."

"I understand if you have to talk about him a little," Adrian said gently. "I guess you'll have to kind of exorcise him. Maybe Miss Purple does, too."

"You are very wise, especially for 5 am," I said.

"Sage thinks I'm brilliant," he said, sleepily, and we both laughed a little.

We kissed goodnight and snuggled as close as we could. Adrian was asleep again in moments, but I lingered for a little while, wanting to take it in, to really feel his warmth and his closeness, timing my breathing with his.

It was almost too much to deal with, I thought. If I hadn't already loved him with all my heart, seeing him cuddling with Violet like that would have done the trick. Maybe most people would never have suspected that "party-boy" Adrian was capable of such compassion and patience, but he was an astonishingly gentle and loving soul underneath all his bluster and charm. As I drifted to sleep, I wondered again how I could have ever thought that a love like this could ever be denied.

_A/N: So I told you guys there was some mega fluff on the way! There are three more chapters to go, I think. Still some loose ends to tie up. But I hope you liked this, even if technically not a lot happened... It was really meant to be more about Adrian settling into his new role as Dad._


	20. A Perfect Day

**Chapter 20: A Perfect Day**

"Sydney!"

I let out a groan. "What?"

"Sydney, sweetheart, wake up." Adrian was shaking me gently. "Sydney, it's the fire alarm."

I sat up, heart thumping. "What? I don't hear anything."

"I do," Adrian said, and we both scrambled out of bed.

The minute we opened the door, I could hear the high pitched beeping, too. Adrian and I ran down the hall, towards the smell of something burning – and we found the girls in the kitchen, hands over their ears, as the fire alarm squawked out its warning about the dangers of burnt toast.

"Sorry," Amy screamed over the alarm.

Adrian had his hands over his ears as well - if it was loud for us, it must have been worse for him, with his sensitive ears. So I dragged a chair to the center of the room, and Adrian stepped on it to pull the battery out of the fire alarm. Instantly, the noise stopped.

"Oh, thank you," Violet said. "That was so loud."

"I'm sorry," Amy said again. "I just wanted to make us breakfast." Her cheeks were bright red with embarrassment.

"Don't worry, sweetheart," I said, as casually as I could. "It happens all the time."

"Especially in _my_ kitchen!" Adrian said. "You know why the toaster probably got so smokey?" Amy shook her head 'no.' "It's because I use it to make pizza bagels," Adrian said. He gestured to the toaster oven, which was still sending out a plume of gray smoke. "The cheese gets everywhere, and I'm too lazy to clean it up. So it's not your fault, ok, sweetie? Even if a master chef had come in here to cook, the same thing would have happened."

Amy nodded, a thin smile on her face. "I'll check for cheese next time," she said, her cheeks still burning.

"And I'll try to clean every once in a while," Adrian said. "I can't be such a slob anymore if I'm going to have roommates now - especially roommates as cute as you three!" Then he picked Amy up and spun her around a little – no easy feat since she was so tall for her age. She giggled, and when he put her down, she continued spinning happily, her embarrassment forgotten.

Meanwhile, I began rifling through Adrian's cabinets looking for something for us to eat. One cabinet was stocked entirely with popcorn supplies and hot cocoa mix, and I surmised that he'd had his helpers stock up for our visit. In another cabinet, I found a variety of breakfast cereals, all with cartoon characters on the front of the box. I picked out a few cereals that looked like they might have some vague nutritional value, Violet helped me bring them to the table, and we all sat down to eat. The cereal might not be that healthy, but at least it seemed unlikely to catch on fire.

"So what were you going to cook, Am-azing?" Adrian asked, as he sprinkled sugar on his Rice Krispies.

"I just wanted to make toast," Amy said. "I like to put peanut butter on toast 'cause it kinda melts when it's warm."

"Ooh," he said. "Sounds good. Do you want to be a chef someday?"

"No," Amy said. Adrian and I exchanged surreptitious glances and tried not to smile. We had finally found a profession that Amy seemed completely uninterested in.

"What else _don't_ you want to do?" I asked.

"I don't want to be a lawyer," she said. "And I don't want to do whatever job that mean lady did, the one who came to our house– I mean, our old house."

"You mean, the notary public?" I supplied.

"Yeah, that. I don't want to be a noter republic," Amy said, then paused. "What job does Rose do?"

"She's what's called a Guardian," I said, carefully. "It's like a bodyguard. Rose, Dimitri, Eddie, and Mikhail are all Guardians."

"I could do that," Amy said. "I could be a Guardian."

"_No_," said Adrian, with unexpected vehemence. Violet dropped her spoon, and the rest of us stared at him in surprise. "I just mean that you can do better than that, sweetie," he said, in a softer tone of voice. "I want you to be the one who _needs_ a bodyguard! You can be a rockstar-ninja-spy-inventor-doctor-ballerina if you want to, and you'd be good at it, I know. But not a Guardian. Ok?"

"_Ok_, _ok_," Amy said, exasperated. "I won't be a Guardian."

I had been watching Adrian as he spoke. It was the first time I'd seen him act at all... well, fatherly with Amy. Up until now, he'd acted more like an indulgent, affectionate uncle or even an older brother. There was hope for him yet, I thought.

"So what do you girls want to do on this bright and sunny Monday?" Adrian asked, obviously changing the subject.

"We don't have to go to school?" Violet asked, and Amy hit her lightly on the arm. "Owww!" Violet whined.

"_Amy_," I said, in a warning tone. "You don't have to hit her. It's not as if I would have forgotten what happens on Mondays if she hadn't reminded me. The school here is on its mid-winter break, so you're off until next Monday, and..." I trailed off. "Oh my God," I said. "I have to call Mr. O'Connor."

"Why?" Violet asked, rubbing her arm.

"Who?" Adrian asked.

"That's my boss," I explained. "And I'm supposed to go in to the garage today at noon. He has no idea that I've moved away. Oh, god, this is a disaster!"

"Just call him, Sage," Adrian said, gently. "It'll be ok."

I nodded and gulped down the last few bites of my cereal. Then I went into the bedroom to find my cell phone and place the call. As I looked for my boss's number, I found myself already dreading his reaction. He would probably read me the riot act for quitting on such little notice, especially after he'd taken me on at the garage with no references or official credentials. I felt awful for leaving him in a lurch, but there was nothing else to be done.

"Hi, Sydney, how are you?" he said when he picked up. "Anything wrong? I missed seeing your pretty face and your pretty daughters at church yesterday."

"Nothing's wrong, sir," I said. "I'm fine and healthy, and so are the girls..."

"That's good, that's good," he said.

"...But I'm calling to tell you that, unfortunately, I have to resign from my job at the garage."

"What?" he said, incredulous. "Sydney, why? I thought you liked working here! And you're my best mechanic, you are."

"It means a lot that you'd say that, sir," I said. "I really respect you, and I did like working there. It's just that, well, I've moved away. I'm several states away, in fact."

"What? I saw your husband in church yesterday..."

"Yes, sir. I left Rick. And I took Amy and Violet." A long pause greeted that statement, and I wondered if the call had been dropped. "Hello?" I said.

"I'm still here," he said. "You left Rick? Any reason for that, in particular?"

"Just that... I um..." I felt my throat closing a little. "I wasn't very happy living with him, sir. And the girls were pretty unhappy too."

"I see," he said. Then, after a pause, he asked, "Do you need anything? Money, a place to stay?"

That was one of the last things I'd expected him to say, and the surprise left me slightly flustered. "Oh, no, sir," I said. "But thank you. We're fine. We're staying with a friend. It's just that we're quite a distance away now and there's no way I could keep the job."

"I can hold a place for you, if you think you'll ever be coming back," he said, a hopeful note in his voice.

"I don't think I will be," I said. "But thanks again. Really, I want to say thank you for hiring me in the first place. I know you were taking a chance on me and I appreciate it."

"It was a bit of a gamble, but boy did it pay out!" he said. "You have a real gift with engines. Made me rethink some things, I'll tell you something, having a lady mechanic in my garage! Taught me a lesson, you did, young lady. I'm sorry to lose you, that's the truth. But if you need a letter of reference, I'll be glad to help you out."

"Thanks, sir," I said. "And um, can I ask a small favor?"

"Of course."

"If you get a call from a garage that I'm applying to work at, you'll find out where I'm living now..."

"Yes?"

"Could you please not tell Rick that information?"

There was another long pause on the other end of the line, and then Mr. O'Connor said, "It was _that_ bad with him, that you're... hiding now?"

"Not exactly hiding, sir, but... I guess it's better if he doesn't know."

"I wish you had told me that you were in that kind of a fix, Sydney. You could have stayed with me. The wife and I would have been glad to have you."

"Thanks, sir," I said, for what felt like the hundredth time. "That's very kind of you. I guess I just didn't really want to tell most people."

"Fair enough," he said. "Well, if I find out your current whereabouts, I'll keep it under my hat. You can count on me. Just you say hi to those sweet daughters of yours for me, will you?"

"I definitely will, sir," I said. I thanked him again, and we said our goodbyes and hung up. Then I sank down on the bed, more shaken by his unexpected kindness and affection than I would have been by anger or indifference.

A few moments later, the door opened slowly, and Adrian walked in, the faint smell of pine-scented cleaner clinging to him. "Hi, Sage," he said. "The girls and I cleaned up."

"Oh," I said. "That's great, thanks."

"Violet said that you can't use Pine-Sol on a counter-top," Adrian said. "What's your position on this important issue?"

"Violet's right," I said bluntly.

Adrian laughed. "Good to know I've been doing it wrong for years and years," he said, and sat down on the bed next to me. "How did your call go?" I filled him in on the phone call, and he put his arm around me as I spoke. "He sounds like a nice guy," Adrian said when I was done. "I should send him a muffin-basket or something. Would he like a muffin-basket?"

"Actually, he probably would," I said.

Adrian nodded. "Everyone likes muffins," he said. "They're like cupcakes, only you can pretend they're healthy, and eat them for breakfast." He gave me a kiss on the cheek. "Maybe we can have muffins for breakfast tomorrow."

"Probably a safe choice," I said, dryly, and Adrian laughed again. He got up and stretched luxuriously, letting out a mighty yawn, then took his t-shirt off, evidently planning to take a shower. He looked at the t-shirt for a moment, obviously seeing something I'd noticed at breakfast – that here and there, spots were visible where Violet had used his shirt as a tissue the night before.

"Sorry about that," I said, as he tossed it into his dirty-clothes hamper.

"About what?" he said, slipping out of his pajama bottoms and putting on a bathrobe.

"The... _snot_." The last word came out in a whisper.

"Well, you warned me," Adrian said, good-naturedly. "I think I can handle it." He leaned down and gave me a quick kiss on the forehead. "I guess I'll have to start carrying tissues with me or something, for next time."

For no real reason I could articulate, I stood up and threw my arms around him and held on tightly. He put his arms around me as well, pulling me close to him.

"Sage," he said, after a moment. "I _was_ just about to take a shower."

"Oh," I said, and released my grip on him. "Sorry."

"No need to apologize," he said. "I meant – do you want to join me?" He began running his hands over my back. It was strange how, when he did that, it was more than a little erotic. "It saves time if we shower together, don't you think? Saves water, too."

"It's important to be ecologically responsible," I said, and kissed him.

* * *

When Adrian and I were clean and dressed, we went back out to the living room to find the girls huddled together in front of Violet's ZOMG tablet. Violet had apparently figured out Adrian's wifi password – it was _sydney – _and she and Amy had been looking up fun places to see in Philadelphia. Violet was interested in seeing the Morris Arboretum, but Adrian told her that it wouldn't be worth visiting until spring. "I'll take you on the first nice Saturday in April, is that a deal, Miss Purple?"

She nodded. "Deal," she said. "And today, maybe we could go to the Please Touch Museum."

"It looks too babyish," Amy said, dismissively.

"No it doesn't," Violet said, pouting a little.

Amy, remembering her vow to be a great big sister, patted Violet on the head. "Ok," she said. "We can go to that. I mean, if Mom and Da... Adrian say it's ok."

If Violet noticed either Amy's slip-up or her patronizing tone, she made no sign of it. She just beckoned me over to look at the website for the museum, and I decided that it actually did look like a lot of fun.

So, once the girls were dressed and ready to go, we went to find my car – it was safe in the parking garage and none the worse for its trip up north – and head out to the Please Touch Museum. Traffic was kind of heavy in the city, so it took us a while to get to the museum, but once we went in, all it took was one look at the huge "Statue of Liberty Torch" made out of old toys to convince us we'd made the right choice.

We bought our tickets, and then Violet said that she wanted to see the Wonderland exhibit. We pushed our way through crowds of children to the life-sized Mad Hatter tea party set, and then walked through the fantasy garden. At the cars exhibit, the girls rode around in model cars and even played pretend with a toll booth before the crowds of kids drove us too nuts. Despite the crowding, the whole thing was fun and silly, and I thought how nice it was to just be somewhere playing together. Rick would have approved of the place, I knew, but he would have dominated it somehow, and sapped all the fun out of it. After a quick ride on the carousel, we left again, but not before Adrian signed us up for a family membership so that we could come back whenever we wanted – hopefully on a day when there were fewer other kids.

It was about lunch-time by then, and Adrian was excited to take us to the best cheese-steak place in the city. When the food came, we discovered that Violet's roll was burned, so Adrian traded his sandwich for hers, insisting that he liked burned parts. After that, we went to the Betsy Ross house. Unfortunately, some research on Violet's ZOMG informed us that actually, Betsy Ross _hadn_'t designed the first flag, and that in fact, she might not have even lived in the house! We enjoyed the visit to the historic old house anyway, of course. The next stop was the famous Liberty Bell, and a fellow tourist took a picture of the four of us standing next to it– a fitting location for our first family portrait, I realized.

We were looking at all the tchotchkes at a souvenir stand when my cell phone rang. It was Rick's ring-tone, so I knew not to answer, but when I saw that he'd left a message, I couldn't resist checking it.

"Divorce is final," he said in the message, without preamble. "I need an address to mail your check. It's extortion, you know. Hope you're proud. And by the way, I refused the package that came today. Back to sender. I'd say I'll be praying for your soul, but at this point, I honestly don't care if you go to hell." I sat down on a high curb, my legs feeling a little weak.

"Who was that?" Adrian asked, coming up to me.

"Message from Rick," I said, softly, not wanting Amy to hear. She was distracted with snow globes at the moment, and I crossed my fingers that nothing would get broken.

"What does he have to say?" Adrian asked.

I relayed the contents of the message, then added, "I don't know what he means by a package, though."

"He could just be messing with your head," Adrian said. "And if you need an address, just give him Zmey's."

"Good idea," I said. Then I sighed. "I love how he accuses me of extortion, after what he did..."

"I think I went too easy on him," Adrian said, in a low, intense voice. "I should have put something in his head. You know? Like a compulsion to think he's hungry when he's full, and to think he's full when he's hungry..."

"That could kill him," I said.

"Exactly," Adrian said.

I shook my head. "You're not a killer," I said. "Neither am I. Rick will have his judgment later."

Adrian looked away and took a few deep breaths. "I'll follow your lead, Sage," he said, and gave me a slightly forced smile. Then we both looked over at the souvenir stand, where a bit of hullabaloo informed us that, in fact, Amy had accidentally broken something. I was ready to speak to the shop owner and defuse the situation, but Adrian got there first, and his charm – and bulging wallet – handled everything with a minimum of fuss. Amy's embarrassment was acute, but again, Adrian's cheerful demeanor had her smiling again in minutes.

We bought the girls a few souvenirs – Amy's favorite was a snow globe featuring the Liberty Bell, and Violet's was a pressed flower bookmark that said Philadelphia on it– and then we took a SEPTA bus back to the place where we'd left the car. Adrian was quiet on the ride, and I wondered if anything was wrong.

The drive back home to Adrian's apartment was pretty quick, and the girls' happy chatter in the elevator seemed to only underscore Adrian's quiet mood. Once we'd gotten into the apartment and the girls had run to their rooms to unpack their new treasures, I pulled Adrian aside.

"Hey," I said. "Something going on?"

"Nothing," he said. "I'm fine."

"Do you maybe want to go for a swim or something?" I suggested, gently. Adrian had told me several times how much swimming relieved his spirit darkness, and I thought that he might need some relief at the moment.

He looked at me in surprise. "Is it that obvious?"

I gave him a quick soft kiss. "To me, yeah."

"I usually swim for at least an hour when I go," he said.

"Do what you have to do," I said. "Will you want dinner afterward?"

"Oh," he said. "Yeah. I'm always starving after a swim." He pulled out his wallet and handed me a credit card. "Go ahead and order whatever you want," he said. "And don't wait for me if you're too hungry to wait."

"Don't worry, we'll be full from those cheese-steaks until tomorrow morning," I said, and he gave me a fairly genuine laugh, then went to go change into his swimming suit.

A few minutes later, he waved goodbye to me as he slipped out into the hall, wearing a bathrobe and flip-flops. The pool was in the basement of his building, and I knew that he'd be riding the elevator down more than 20 floors in his Speedo and bathrobe. I imagined a girl getting on the elevator at some point and seeing him. He'd probably say something friendly and mildly flirtatious to her – Adrian always flirted, it was his nature – and he might even let his bathrobe fall open a little to let her see his body. Any girl in that situation would no doubt call a friend later and talk about the hot guy she'd seen in the elevator. But she wouldn't know his kindness and wit, which were the real reasons to love him, and she wouldn't ever get to have more than an interchange of banter with him – because he was mine, my Adrian.

I found my own tablet computer and ordered in some groceries, then sat with Amy for a little bit while she played Holo-Wii. The game made little sense to me, but I didn't really mind – I just liked spending time with Amy. After a little while, I sought out Violet, who was reading in her room, in her window seat.

"Hi, Violet," I said, sitting down with her.

"I'm _reading_, Mommy," she said, a little irritably.

"I know, honey," I said. "I don't like being interrupted when I'm reading, either, but I need to talk to you."

She put her finger in her book to hold the place and looked at me. "Ok," she said. "What's up?"

I took the book from her and put her new bookmark into it to hold the place. "I wanted to ask you if you're doing ok," I said. "What made you cry last night?"

"Nothing," she said, looking down at her hands.

"It must have been something," I said. "You can tell me. What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she said. "I'm fine."

"You sure?" I asked, taking her hand. "Maybe you have something on your mind. Whatever it is, it's ok. Just talk to me."

"I don't _want_ to," she said.

I waited for a few moments, but she didn't move or speak. "Ok," I said. "But listen. If you change your mind, you can talk to me whenever you want, about whatever you want." I paused, then added, "Or Adrian, if you want. He'll listen, too."

She nodded, but didn't reply.

"Do you want to help me make dinner in a few minutes?" I asked.

"After this chapter," she said, impatiently, so I gave her a kiss and handed her back her book. She began reading again immediately, and I left, feeling a little unsettled.

I realized that I shouldn't have tried to talk to her while she was reading, but still... There was something wrong with my little daughter, and I couldn't be sure exactly what it was, or how to help her. Did she need a counselor? After everything she'd experienced recently, it seemed reasonable. But where would I find a counselor set up to handle her specific problems? A human might think her stories about Adrian and his unusual talents were symptoms of insanity, while a Moroi might not even want to work with a human. I sighed. I would give her a few days, I decided. She would probably come to me sooner or later with her worries, and I could help her more then. In the meantime, I'd try to make sure that she knew I was there for her.

* * *

About an hour and a half later, Adrian returned from the pool, his hair wet and slick, the scent of chlorine trailing behind him. "Honeys, I'm home," he said, and Amy and Violet both ran over to give him hugs as if they hadn't seen him in days. Then he came over to me to give me a hug and a kiss, sniffing the air in the apartment experimentally as he did. "It smells like Christmas in here or something," he said. "Where did you order in from?"

"I ordered groceries," I said. "I cooked."

"You cooked?" he said, as if I had said that I had discovered a new source of renewable energy.

"Yes," I said, laughing a little. "That's what I often do about an hour before it's time to eat."

"Wow," he said. "What'd you make?"

"Roasted chicken," I said.

"I helped mash the potatoes," Violet said, proudly.

"And I cleaned the sprouts and put them in the oven," Amy said. "And I made the salad."

"Well, I guess I'm going to have to wash the dishes, then," Adrian said, and hugged me tightly enough to lift me off the ground a little. "Is there time for me to take a shower, or..."

"You have time," I said.

So, about fifteen minutes later, Adrian joined us at the table, smelling of soap now, rather than chlorine. Amy said grace, and then we ate together. Adrian had never seen Brussels sprouts before, and was surprised to find out that, contrary to myth, they were actually pretty good when cooked the right way. As we ate, Adrian joked around with all of us, the hint of spirit darkness completely gone. Violet sculpted a mountain out of her mashed potatoes, and Amy added a lava explosion made out of ketchup. Adrian, inspired, ran to the cabinet to find some cheese-flavored chips, which he sprinkled on the ketchup to add "highlights" to the lava, then dotted the "volcano" with tiny bits of salad and Brussels sprouts for foliage. Violet declared it too pretty to eat – so Amy stole it and ate it for her.

Really, our first family dinner at home went perfectly. Afterward, true to his word, Adrian cleaned up while the girls and I played a few hands of Crazy Eights. Then we all curled up together in front of a movie with some popcorn and cocoa. The girls went to bed without too much fuss, and once they were down for the night, Adrian and I watched an episode of a cartoon he liked – it turned out to be really funny, actually – and then we went to bed. And once we were safely behind the soundproofing, Adrian proved that he wasn't too tired from his long swim to completely blow my mind.

"God, you're gorgeous," Adrian said, as we lay together in the afterglow. I was lying on my stomach, my head turned towards him, and he was leaning on his elbow, facing me. "Look at you."

"I can't see me," I said, giggling. "I can't see a thing in this dark room."

"I can see you," he said, as he slowly drew shapes on my back with his fingertip. "Trust me. You're perfect. Didn't you notice all those guys staring at you today when we were walking around?"

"They were looking at _you_," I said.

"Well, the girls were, maybe," Adrian said. "And the gay dudes, sure. But the straight guys – and the lesbians – must have been looking at you."

"Who were the bisexuals looking at?" I asked, trying to keep from laughing.

"Both of us," Adrian said. "And then they started fantasizing about the world's hottest threesome. Tough luck for them, though – I'm not sharing you with anybody."

I giggled a little and rolled onto my side so that I was facing him. "Good to know," I said.

"But seriously, Sage," he said. "You really didn't notice anyone looking at you?"

"No..."

"Not even that guy at the museum? Mister-Newly-Single-Dad, with the wedding ring tan lines, who kept encouraging his son to play with Violet and Amy?"

"Maybe he just thought Violet and Amy seemed like nice kids," I said.

"His son was like, three!" Adrian said. "I'm pretty sure he was more interested in their mother."

I thought about mentioning the women I'd seen eying him – but then discarded the idea. For one thing, he'd probably noticed, too. For another, I didn't exactly need to feed his ego on that score. "I guess you better stay on your toes, then, vampire," I said. "Or the next Mister-Newly-Single-Dad will sweep me off my feet, wedding ring tan lines and all."

"Yeah," Adrian said. "About that." He took my hand in his. "You still have yours on."

"My ring?" I said, momentarily confused. "Oh. I guess I am."

"Come here, Sage," Adrian said, and took my hand. He slipped the ring off my hand and put it down on the nightstand – I heard the soft 'clink' in the darkness – and then snuggled up to me again, our legs pressed together, our hands clasped.

"I don't know why I didn't do that sooner," I said. "I guess I had stopped thinking of my ring as having anything to do with Rick. It was more like... an excuse to not get hit on at the grocery store."

Adrian laughed. "Did you get hit on at the grocery store a lot?"

"When I used to take my ring off during the day, yeah," I said. "I finally just sort of left it on and forgot I even had it."

"What do you want to do with it now?" Adrian asked.

"Sell it," I said. "I can sell it and give the money to a local women's shelter."

"That's a great idea," Adrian said, taking my hand and kissing it right where the ring had been. Then I heard him draw in a deep breath. "Sydney," he said, gently. "I know you said he didn't hit you, but... I mean, is there anything you haven't told me?"

"No," I said.

"Are you sure?" Adrian asked. "I'll listen to anything you have to say."

I swallowed heavily. I didn't want to talk about it. "Thanks, but really, I'm fine," I said. "Listen, today was a great day. I don't want to spoil it."

"It really _was_ great," Adrian agreed, letting me change the subject. "It might have been _the_ perfect day."

"The _perfect_ day?" I said, laughing. "Fire alarms, traffic, crowds, broken souvenirs..."

"No big deal," Adrian said. "I loved it." When I laughed again, he said, "Really! If I were in some sort of 'Groundhogs Day' scenario, and this was the day I was stuck in, I don't think I'd mind too much."

"Come on," I said. "You wouldn't rather be on the observation platform of the Eiffel Tower, or in Shanghai drinking mai-tais, or something?"

"First off, mai-tais aren't my drink, Sage," he said. "Too sweet. Second, my advice is, don't get complicated drinks in Shanghai. Stick to the basics – rum and coke, whiskey and soda, gin and tonic. And third, and most important, no. I liked today just as it was." He thought for a moment, then added, "Maybe, to put the icing on the cake, it would have been fun to run into some of our friends at some point, something like that. Lissa and Rose and Ozera and Castille and Jailbait and everyone. Just so long as you and I get to be alone at the end of the night."

"Hmmm," I said. "That's an important part."

"Best part," he said, and we both laughed softly. "Although the dinner was great, too. No one ever cooked an actual... meal for me before, Sage."

"Never?" I said. "No girl trying to impress you on a date?"

"Nope."

"Not even your girlfriend – the one you lived with?"

He shrugged. "She didn't really live with me," he said. "I mean, she was at my place all the time and had her own drawer and stuff, but didn't officially live here. As for cooking... Well, she made some cookies from a package a few times. She might have toasted me a bagel. But no one ever roasted a chicken for me. I mean" – he hastily added – "I know it wasn't just for me. It was for all of us. But still. I really appreciated it, Sage."

"With Rick, he just assumed I'd cook," I said. "He didn't appreciate it when I did. He just got angry if I didn't."

"Well, Rick is a jackass," Adrian said, calmly. "What is this, the 1950s?"

"The funny thing is... I actually kind of like cooking."

"Well, whenever you feel like it, go nuts," Adrian said. "I can't promise I'll ever get good at cooking, but I can promise that I'll always clean up if you cook." He began stroking my hair, softly. "I swear, it changed my whole apartment, having it smell like a proper dinner. It was like... home." He laughed a little, then added, "Sorry, that was really cheesy."

"It's ok," I said. "It's sweet, really."

He kissed me, then began to speak again. "For the past few years, I've been going swimming four or five times a week, you know, for the the spirit-darkness." I nodded, knowing he could see me in the dark. "And it works, that's the great thing. It drains me of everything – all the darkness and instability, but everything else too... all my thoughts, my energy, my strength. I mean, after a good swim, I can barely lift my arms up over my head. So after a swim, I would always come back up to the apartment completely empty. I'd eat a quick snack, order in some Thai food or something, then maybe grab a six-pack and drop by a buddy's apartment, or at least call someone just to chat. Tonight was the first time that I came home and there was someone there. Two little girls came running to hug me, and one gorgeous lady gave me a kiss." He kissed me softly on the lips. "It wasn't just the dinner," he said. "It was the whole thing."

"I'm glad that you liked it," I said, touched. "You've really gone to extremes to make us feel welcome. I thought some chicken was the least I could do."

"I didn't mind," he said. "I like going to extremes." He sighed and kissed me again. "I won't lie, Sage. I was a little nervous about you girls coming to live with me. I mean, I never really lived with anyone. For all I knew, we'd drive each other crazy."

"We still might," I said.

"Maybe," he said, but the way he said it, I knew he was confident that we wouldn't.

We cuddled up closely for a few minutes. When it looked like we were going to fall asleep, we both put on some clothes again, and Adrian got up to open the door a crack, so he'd be able to hear what was going on in the apartment. We said a few more goodnights, and settled in to let sleep claim us.

Everything _was_ almost perfect, I mused, as my eyelids grew heavier and the pillow became more and more comfortable. Burnt toast, traffic jams, crowds – nothing took the shine off the day, except maybe my worries about Violet. Adrian was right. It was a day I wouldn't mind living over and over. Especially this part, the part with Adrian falling asleep next to me, his breathing growing regular and slow. But near dawn, I woke up briefly when Adrian crawled back into bed with me, after waking up to console Violet through another mysterious bout of tears. We'd have to do something to help her, I knew. I just wasn't sure what.

_A/N: Ok, so originally, the last chapter, this chapter, and the NEXT chapter, were all – in my original plan– one chapter that I thought would be around 5000-6000 words long. Hah! This chapter changed from a paragraph or two into a whole little chapter about their first day as a family, when maybe everything is going wrong but they have a great time anyway. _

_For the rest of the story, I'm not adding any more plots or subplots, but I guess there'll be at least four or five more chapters. So... that might be good news for some of you, who say you're sad the story is almost over. :) _

_Next chapter: telling the girls that Adrian is a Moroi..._


	21. Forever and Ever

**Chapter 21: Forever and Ever **

_aka: The Importance of Tissues_

The next few days went by a lot like Monday had. Each day, the four of us ate breakfast together, went out to do some sight-seeing or some shopping, and came home to have dinner. After dinner, we hung out playing board games, watching movies, reading stories, and just having fun. It wasn't exciting, exactly, but it was nice. It was the family life I'd always wanted for myself and my children.

The girls were getting used to Adrian's apartment. We met a few other children who lived in the building, and set up some playdates. We signed Amy up for karate lessons, and she surprised all of us by saying that she wanted to keep up with gymnastics, too. Violet wanted to continue with her French lessons, but said she also wanted to try a painting class. Both girls were nervous about their new school, so I arranged for them to have a visit there, and the principal thoughtfully assigned each of them a genuinely friendly "buddy" from their grade who came in to show them around. It was nice to see some of their anxieties fade away.

I settled in to my new life, too. I got completely unpacked, and hung up a few photographs of the girls here and there. I made a spreadsheet of all the local garages in the area, and began my research on where I'd most want to apply for a job. I called the few friends I had back in North Carolina to tell them that I'd moved. I asked Abe Mazour's office to contact Rick regarding the money, and was assured that a bank check for the first million was on its way. I figured out how to work Adrian's shower and the jacuzzi, and I finally learned which drawer was the silverware drawer. Adrian's apartment was starting to feel more "ours" than "his."

Adrian was getting used to living with us, too. He learned how to make scrambled eggs, and even began to remember to put the toilet seat back down. He arranged to rent another apartment in the same building to be his studio, so that he could paint whenever the mood struck. He swam most nights, and he made sure that his feeder would drop by only after the girls had gone to bed. As soon as the studio was ready, it would be the new place for him to meet his feeder, but for now, the bathroom was working out ok. So far, his life was meshing quite well with ours, even if it meant that he was awake during the day and asleep at night, contrary to the usual Moroi schedule.

There was one way, however, in which his sleep schedule wasn't entirely normal; nearly ever night, he woke up to the sound of Violet crying. Adrian and I started taking turns sitting with her, and as far as we could tell, we were equally welcome. We asked her several times to talk to us about what was wrong, but she always shook her head and said that she was fine. I considered just letting her cry by herself – it seemed like the kind of step parenting books would recommend – but most parenting books didn't have advice for the kind of trauma that Violet had gone through, and I figured she had earned a bit of coddling. Besides, neither Adrian nor I had the heart to just let her cry alone.

It was difficult to know how to work through Violet's instability, especially because it seemed that we were all guarding secrets from one another. Neither girl knew that Adrian was a type of vampire, and Violet still didn't know that he was Amy's father. I was sure that the longer we hid the truth from the girls, the more of a shock it would be when they found out. So, Adrian and I decided to tell them before they started school, so they'd have time to adjust before they had homework and stress.

On Friday afternoon, we sat them down on the couch in the living room, so that we could talk.

"So, girls," I said. "You two already know that Adrian's pretty... special."

"Not short-bus special," Adrian added. "The other kind. The cool kind."

I ignored his comment and went on. "You saw him control fire, and heal injuries, and all sorts of things."

"Right," Amy said. "It's cool."

Violet nodded her agreement. "Like Harry Potter," she said, in a near whisper.

"Well, I am a Gryffindor," Adrian said. "But I'm not exactly a magician."

"Then how do you do magic?" Amy asked.

Adrian paused, took a breath, then said, "I'm what's called a Moroi. It means that I'm not like ordinary people. I have certain magic abilities, and I don't tend to get sick very often. I also can hear, see, and smell much better than normal people can. Even better than you, Am-azing."

"What is the word?" Violet asked. "More..."

"Moroi," I said.

"How do you spell it?" Violet asked.

"I-T," Amy and Adrian said at the same time, then laughed in stereo. Violet and I sighed.

"M-O-R-O-I," I said. "Why do you want to know?"

"I'm looking it up," she said, and sure enough, she already was typing away on her ZOMG tablet.

"Oh, no, baby, don't look at that stuff," I said. "It won't be accurate..."

"It says here a Moroi is a kind of vampire or ghost," she said, with wide eyes.

I pulled the ZOMG away from her as gently as I could. "Honey," I said. "I know what the myths are about Moroi, but I also know that they're incorrect. Adrian's not a ghost who sucks people's energy away..."

"Are you _Dracula_?" Violet asked Adrian. She was beginning to shrink away from him.

"No," he said, smiling gently. "I'm not Dracula. I'm not even Count Chocula!" That got a smile from Amy, but not Violet.

"But do you... suck blood?" Violet whispered.

Adrian looked at me for help. I moved to put my arm around Violet, and said, "He does. But only a little at a time, and only from people who say it's ok."

"I don't hurt them," Adrian said. "They actually like getting bitten. My magic makes it feel nice."

"Weird..." Amy said. I noticed her begin to move her tongue around in her mouth, and I realized she was checking for fangs.

"And when I bite them, they don't turn into Moroi or anything," Adrian went on. "They stay just the same."

"And um," I said, quickly. "Adrian was always a Moroi, even when he was born. His parents are both Moroi, so he is too."

"Your father and mother are both Moroi?" Amy asked Adrian, picking up on my comment.

"Yes," Adrian said, then added, to Amy, "My mother is named Daniella. She's actually pretty nice, especially now that she's... back home after being away for a while. Maybe you'll meet her someday."

"Will sunlight kill you?" Violet asked, in a whisper. She obviously didn't care about meeting Adrian's mother, at least, not right now.

"Yes," Adrian said, and moved his hand into a beam of light. "Oh!" he shouted. "It _burns_ me! _Precious_! Oh, it burns..." Then he fell onto the couch theatrically and twitched for a minute before sitting up. "See?" he said, holding up his hand. "I'm fine. I do get sunburn pretty easily, I'll admit. But Miss Purple, you've been outside with me in the light. You know sunlight doesn't kill me."

Violet set her jaw obstinately. "It could have been a trick."

"It's not a trick," Amy said. "Come on, Vy-Vy. Be nice."

"It's ok, Am-azing," Adrian said. "She's trying to understand. Miss Purple, you just want to check on all your vampire stereotypes. So, let's see. Garlic's ok by me, though I try not to eat it on hot dates. I can't turn into a bat. Don't really want to. Eww. I don't sleep in a coffin – it sounds really uncomfortable, don't you think? And obviously, I _can_ see myself in mirrors. How else would I get my hair so perfect every day?"

Amy smiled a little at that, but Violet continued to stare with wide eyes.

"I hope you won't change how you feel about him now that you know his secret," I said. "Because he never hurt us and he never would."

"Thanks, Sydney," Adrian said, taking my hand.

Abruptly, Violet got up from the couch and ran out of the room at full speed. The moment she was gone, Amy asked in a low voice, "What am I?"

"You're what's called a dhampir," Adrian said, very quietly, then glanced towards the hallway.

"That's the word the mean lady called me," Amy said, stricken.

"Adrian will explain about dhampirs," I said, and gave Amy a kiss. "You're my wonderful daughter, and I love you, ok?" She nodded. To Adrian, I said, "I'm going to talk to Violet. Amy, I'll be back soon, ok?" She nodded again, and I got up.

"First thing you should know about dhampirs is that they kick ass," Adrian said as I left the room and went down the hall to Violet's room.

I found Violet under her bed, clutching the stuffed elephant she'd had since she was a baby. Its name was Elephanty – emphasis on the third syllable, which was pronounced with a soft "ah." Violet's wrath on those who mispronounced his name was legendary.

I got down on the floor so that we could see each other. "Hi," I said.

"Is it just you?" she whispered.

"Just me," I said.

"Close the door," she whispered, and I did as I had been told. Once the door was closed, she crawled out from under the bed, pulling the elephant behind her by the trunk, and we went to sit together in her window seat.

"How's Elephanty?" I asked.

"_Concerned_," she said, in a low voice. "Elephanty is _concerned_ to be living in a house with a vampire-man." She was doing her best impression of me, mid-reprimand, and it was tempting to laugh – but I didn't.

"Well, you and Elephanty can both relax," I said. "Adrian is a type of vampire, it's true. But that doesn't change the fact that he's our friend. Hasn't he done a lot of very nice things for us?"

"It could have been a trick," Violet whispered. "To get our _blood_."

"He doesn't need to trick people to get blood," I said. "People volunteer, like I told you."

"But he might change his mind and want to eat us," she said.

"I've known him for ten years," I said. "From before I even met your dad. Adrian is a good person. He saved my life several times, and you know he saved you from that fire at the bad guy's house. And didn't he set up this room for you, as a present?"

"He's a vampire, though," Violet said. "He's _scary_."

"Are you really scared of him?" I asked. "Really?" She nodded silently, so I gestured to the rocking chair. "Didn't he cuddle with you for hours just last night, in that rocking chair, when you were sad?"

Her eyes widened. "What if he bit me?" she asked. "Check me, Mommy." She held the collar of her shirt away so that I could see her neck. Naturally, it was unharmed.

"He didn't bite you, baby," I said. "He would never do that. A long time ago, some people I worked with said that I had to donate some blood for their experiment. Adrian wouldn't let them come near me with the needle, because he said that no one should have to give blood unless they want to. He's very kind, honey. You know that."

"I don't know that," she said. "He's a vampire-man. He's going to turn mean when we don't know he's going to turn mean. In the night. He'll just wake up in the night and drink all our blood. I know he will."

"Listen," I said, wondering what she was really upset about. "Just because he's a Moroi doesn't mean he's a horrible monster. It just means that he's a little different, a little weird. He needs a weird kind of blood transfusion every other day. You read about hemophilia in _Highlights_, didn't you?"

She nodded. "Russian royal family," she said. "The Czars." She pronounced it "See-sars."

"Right," I said. "It's kind of like that. He needs extra blood. But in return, he can do nice magic. Remember when he fixed your broken arm?"

Her mouth pressed into a thin line. "No," she said.

"You do," I said. "I know you do."

She was silent.

"Adrian's difference isn't bad," I said. "Actually, it makes him special. Like your sister. She's a little different, with her good hearing and sight. She's special. That doesn't make her bad. Or like me. I can do my tricks, right? That just makes me special. Not bad."

She paused to consider that. "Am _I_ special?" she asked.

"Of course you are," I said. "Of course." I hugged her. "Maybe you don't jump out of windows or see in the dark, but you're very special. Especially to me, baby." She looked down at the floor. "Did I ever tell you how you got your name?" I asked.

"No," she said.

"I told you when you were a baby," I said. "But you don't remember because that was a long time ago. So I'll tell you again, ok?" She nodded. "One day," I said, "before you were born – this was back when you were still in my belly, and you were so, so small that no one but me could tell that you were there yet – I went for a walk. I was kind of sad that day..."

"Were you sad because of me?" she asked, anxiously.

"No, of course not," I said, which was essentially a lie. My second pregnancy had been as unexpected as my first, and much less welcome, initially, at least. "I was sad because of... grownup stuff," I said, smoothly. "And I went for a walk. It was early May, and nice out, just starting to get warm. But I was too sad to notice how pretty it was outside. I was just thinking my sad thoughts. And I sat down by the side of the street in the grass to rest. That's when I saw something that made me feel better. Do you know what it was?"

Violet shook her head "no."

"It was a pretty little violet in the grass. The flower kind, not the girl kind." Violet nodded. "I thought that maybe the violet was there to cheer me up," I said, struggling to keep my voice from cracking. I had been so miserable that day, and the sight of the little flower had meant so much to me. "It was just a little thing, but it made me happy," I said, and blinked away a few tears. "A brave little flower, hiding in the grass, but brave enough to grow, brave enough to be beautiful. And I thought that you were going to be like that flower and that you'd make me happy. And you do."

"Oh," was all she said, but I knew she had been listening.

"I'm sure you make everyone happy like that," I said. "And I love you just the way you are."

Violet crawled into my lap and put her head on my shoulder, and I stroked her back. After a few minutes, she spoke up again, her voice muffled. "Remember when Dad hit me?" she asked, quietly. "Remember when the lightening came?"

"Yes, honey, I remember."

"And Dad fell on the ground, and he didn't move?"

"I remember."

"Did Mr. Adrian make the lightening come out of me?"

"Yes," I said. "He put it in your bracelet. He did that to protect you."

"Did he... kill Dad? Is Dad _dead_?" The last word came out as a whisper.

"No, baby," I said, understanding some of her concern. The last time she'd seen her father, he had been passed out on the ground. For all she knew, he _was_ dead. "Your dad's still alive," I said. "I promise. You know," I added brightly, "If you want to, you can call him. I bet he'd like that." I wasn't entirely sure that it was a good idea for her to talk to him, but I had to offer.

She considered that. "No," she said. "No. I don't want to talk to him."

"If you change your mind, you can talk to him any time you want," I said. "Just ask me."

"Ok," she said. "But I won't." She paused again, then asked, "Is Mr. Adrian going to turn mean?"

"I can't promise that he'll never ever get angry, because everyone does, sometimes," I said, carefully. "And he might say or do something you don't like, someday. But he'll never hit you. He'll never do anything to hurt you on purpose. He loves you, sweetheart. He wants you to be happy and safe."

"Dad turned mean," she said, her voice shaking. "Dad turned _really_ mean."

"I know he did, baby," I said, wanting to cry, too. "I saw it. I was so mad at him for doing that."

"He hit me," she said, in an intense whisper. "He pushed me on the ground. It was _scary_."

"Dads aren't supposed to do that," I said. "I bet he's sorry now, but that doesn't make it ok."

"I was scared," she said, again, and started to cry.

Suddenly, Violet's fears and concerns began to make sense to me. Unlike Amy, who had been more or less disenchanted with Rick when he'd rejected her, Violet had still kind of trusted Rick. She'd seen him be harsh to Amy, but he'd never had a cruel word for _her_. In fact, he used to carry her around on his shoulders and fuss over her. Then, all of a sudden, he had pushed her to the ground, and moments later, had insulted and attacked her beloved sister. Violet had been nearly hysterical that night, and it had probably taken her a few days to process the depths of his betrayal. And now, her new friend – and potential father figure – had turned out to be literally not human.

"It must be hard for you," I said, cautiously. "You're not sure who to trust right now, isn't that it?"

She nodded, her head moving up and down against my shoulder.

"Adrian's not like your dad," I said. "He's different, but in a good way. He's not mean or bad. He wouldn't hurt anyone, especially not you."

"Maybe," she said.

"He's your friend," I said. "You know him. He's been cheering you up when you feel sad lately, hasn't he?"

She nodded a little.

"And he fixed your arm that night – do you remember now?"

She nodded, apparently unwilling to admit that she'd remembered all along.

"Well, don't you think that means that he's your friend?" I said.

"I guess so," she said.

"Do you think you could give him a chance?" I asked.

There was a long pause. "Do you promise he won't bite me?" she asked.

"I promise," I said. "And I promise that if he ever does something to hurt you on purpose, you and Amy and I will move away and live by ourselves, ok? You two are my most important people."

"More important than Adrian?" she asked.

"Yes," I said. I loved Adrian with all my heart, but I loved my children just that little bit more.

"Ok," she said. "I'll give him a chance."

"Good," I said. "Do you want to come out and talk to him now?"

"Ok," she said again. "I'll try."

"He'll be glad," I said.

She took my hand and held it tightly as we walked down the hall. I called ahead of us, so that Adrian and Amy would know that we were coming and wouldn't say anything about Amy being a dhampir. That was a conversation that would definitely have to wait. When we walked in to the living room, Violet said, with grave formality, "I apologize if I hurt your feelings, Mr. Adrian," just as I had taught her to do.

"It's ok, Miss Purple," he said. "I think a lot of people might be scared of me. Your mom used to be scared of me before we got to be friends."

"I wasn't _scared_ of you," I said.

He rolled his eyes. "You were too," he said. "But you thought I was cute, too. So you didn't know what to think." Then he turned back to Violet. "Want to come sit next to me, Miss Purple? Plenty of room on the couch..."

"Yeah, come sit with us, Vy-Vy," Amy said, patting the space next to her.

"No, thank you," Violet said. "I want to read my book now."

"Ok," Adrian said, smiling as cheerfully as he could, though I saw the hurt in his eyes. "That's ok. Maybe when you're done with your chapter."

"Maybe," she said, and left the room. I watched her walk away. She looked so small.

Once I had heard her door shut firmly, I asked Amy in a low voice if she was ok.

"I'm ok," she said, softly. "Adrian explained it. Dhampirs sound... kind of cool."

"They are," I said, smiling. "Did he tell you that Rose and Eddie are dhampirs?"

She nodded. "He said that's why I thought they seemed familiar," she said. "He said that I'll always be able to tell when someone's a dhampir."

"That's how I knew when I met you, that you were mine," Adrian said, quietly. "I knew the only way you'd be a dhampir is if you had a Moroi for a dad. And I'm the only Moroi your mother was... um, close to."

Amy rolled her eyes. "Eww," she said. "I know all about that stuff. My friend Maddy had this book..."

I didn't have the energy to have a birds-and-bees talk at that exact moment, and from the panicked look on Adrian's face, I could tell he was of the same mind. "I'm glad you know," I said. "We can, um, talk about that some other time, I guess..."

"Eww," she said again. "No, I'm ok. Anyway, so anything else I should know about... being a dhampir? Can I do magic?"

I said "no" at the same time that Adrian said "maybe." I looked at him questioningly.

"Your mom has some special talents," he said. "Dhampirs don't inherit Moroi magic, but you might have gotten some of your mom's skills."

"_You_ can do magic too?" Amy asked me, incredulous.

"I left that behind," I said. "But... technically... kind of."

Adrian laughed. "Your mom doesn't give herself enough credit," he said. "She's awesome."

"Shut up," I said, affectionately. "We're talking about Amy today, not me. And, Amy, do you have any other questions?"

"Is Vy-Vy ok?" she asked, quietly. "Did you _tell_ her?"

"Not yet," I said. "But I hope she'll be ok soon. I think she's still sad about what happened with... um... Mr. Reznick." That seemed like the easiest way to refer to Rick. "We'll have to keep being extra nice to her. And extra patient." I examined Amy's face. "Are you ok now, about what happened that night, you know... with him? I know you were upset at the time."

"I was sad right when it happened," Amy said. "A little. But... he's been so mean for so long. It was almost easier when he just got really, really mean. Like... when you have a loose tooth and then it just comes out. You feel better."

"Exactly," I said, and hugged her. "That's very well put. Maybe you can be a poet."

"Maybe," she said. "Um, Mom? Did Dad, um, I mean, Mr. Reznick, did he call me evil because he knew I was a... this thing?"

"Yes," I said. "He grew up in a household that hates Moroi and dhampirs. So did I, actually – although we'll have to leave that story for another day. When he realized that you were Adrian's daughter, not his own, he was pretty angry, realizing I had lied to him, and..." I sighed. "People do bad things when they're angry sometimes. Especially people who've been raised to hate."

She nodded. "I still don't like him," she said.

"Me either," I said, and we laughed a little. "But the way he reacted – that gives you a little idea of why I didn't tell people who your father really was. Some people really don't like dhampirs, and might have taken you away from me. I had to hide you for your own safety." I didn't have the heart to tell her that one of those people I was hiding her from was her own Grampa, who she loved.

She considered what I'd said. "I _was_ sort of wondering," she said. "Do we still have to hide? Are bad people going to come and take me and Violet away again?"

"Not if I have anything to say about it," Adrian interjected. He took Amy's hand. "If we have to, we'll hire a Guardian, ok? I'll do anything to keep you safe."

"Can Rose be our Guardian?" Amy asked, with bright eyes. "I like her."

"I know you do," I said. "I like her too. That's why we're having lunch with her tomorrow."

"Oh, that's tomorrow?" Amy said, delighted.

"It is!" I said. "But anyway, she can't be our guardian because she already guards someone. Someone kind of important."

"Who?" Amy asked.

Adrian and I exchanged glances. "The Queen," Adrian said, in a low voice.

Amy's eyes grew wider.

"I'll let you explain about this stuff," I said. "I should probably start dinner."

* * *

Violet was quiet and withdrawn for most of the rest of the night. She didn't want to help me fix dinner, and when we were done cleaning up, she read by herself in her room, listening to the new satellite radio that Adrian had bought her. Amy visited her for a little while to try to cheer her up, and they used Amy's tricorder on some of their new souvenirs. Later, Amy reported that the liquid inside her snow globe was a kind of oil, not water – and that Violet didn't want to talk about Adrian or anything much at all. Violet went to sleep without hearing a story, saying that she was tired. That night, she didn't cry.

The next day, the plan was to go visit Rose's house for a friendly lunch. It was a chance for Violet and Amy to meet Rose and Dimitri's children, Cole and Zach, and a chance for all the adults to catch up and chat. Amy was excited to see Rose again, and while Violet didn't show much enthusiasm for the visit, she didn't actively object. So we all climbed into my car and set out for Rose's in the late morning.

As it turned out, Rose's house was on the fringes of the Moroi court. But Rose welcomed us warmly, giving each girl a quick hug, and accepted Adrian's offer of a muffin-basket with a laugh.

Rose showed us into her living room, which showed signs of a recent and hurried cleaning. The room was spacious, although any room with Rose in it always felt a little too small – she just had that kind of presence. After a moment, Dimitri came in to greet us, and on his tail were two little boys – Cole and Zach. They had Ozera eyes, it was true, but they had Rose's dark coloring and hair.

"Go on," Dimitri said, gently, to his sons. "Introduce yourself, like I taught you."

"Hello," said the older one, introducing himself. His hair was long, to his chin, and his bright blue eyes shone with pride. "My name is Cole Belikov. I'm 8 years old. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Nice to meet you, too," I said, stifling a giggle as I shook his hand. Hearing him speak was like hearing Dimitri's voice coming from a child's body.

"Hi," said the younger one, who, as Adrian had mentioned, was actually slightly taller than his brother. His hair was short and curled at the edges, and I could tell that if he were to let it grow, it would be just as curly as Rose's. "My name is Zachery Belikov. I'm 7 years old. It's a pleasure to meet you." I shook his hand as well.

Violet caught sight of the boys and let out a little "eep!" sound and clung to me, unwilling to move. Amy, meanwhile, walked over to introduce herself to the boys, and it was kind of funny to watch all the adults watching the children, as if the children were pets or something.

Amy talked to the boys for a few moments, then looked over at Violet. "It's ok, Vy-Vy," Amy said, beckoning her forward. "We're going to play Legos. Want to play?"

Violet nodded uncertainly, and I nudged her forward. The four children went to play on one side of the room, while Dimitri politely offered Adrian and me a seat and a beverage. I had a diet soda, and Adrian asked for a beer, and Rose and Dimitri joined us at the kitchen table. Soon, we began munching on chips and dip as if we hadn't seen food in our lives while we caught up on Rose and Dimitri's lives at court. Lissa had a lot of Guardians now, Rose explained, and she and Dimitri were allowed to take alternate weekends off together, assuming that there were no special functions planned. Once we were fairly well caught up on court affairs, Rose asked me my opinion of a particular children's book, and we all talked about the toys, books, and music that our children liked, comparing notes. As we talked, the kids seemed to be getting along pretty well, which was a blessing.

Once we were ready for more substantial food, Dimitri fired up the grill, apparently unswayed by the weather, and in a little while we all were served hamburgers and roasted potatoes, as well as a heaping portion of borscht.

"I learned how to make the stuff to keep the _comrade_ happy," Rose said. "It was our deal. I make borscht every so often, and he cleans the leaves out of the gutters."

"It's a good deal," Dimitri said, giving her a kiss.

"Don't kiss me if you're eating that stuff," Rose said, but the twinkle in her eye told me that she was joking. "Hey, Sydney," she added, in a more serious tone. "Did my dad get everything set up ok – you know, with the divorce?"

I told her about his phone call and the check, and she nodded, satisfied.

"And the children?" Dimitri asked, in a low tone. "Are they well?" We all looked over at the kids. Cole was doing a handstand, trying to get Amy's attention, and Violet was sitting next to Zach and gazing at him as if he were the last drink of water in the desert. Well, that was more or less as expected.

"They're ok," I said. "Violet's having a bit of a rough time, but... we're managing."

"She'll be ok," Adrian said, in a tone that suggested more hope than certainty.

"My father was also... a problem," Dimitri said. "Much worse, I think, than that… _man... _you were once married to." He said the word as if it pained him. "If it would help, I would talk to your little girl about it."

"Maybe," I said. "We still haven't told her the whole story yet... ."

But just then, Violet stood up, knocking a few toys over. "What do you mean?" she was saying, in a high pitched voice.

"Amy's a dhampir, like me," Zach replied, obviously confused. "That means she has a Moroi dad. You didn't know that?"

"What's a dhampir?" Violet asked.

Rose and I ran over, shouting, trying to stop Zach from speaking, but the boy was offering a good-natured – and accurate – answer.

"It means half-Moroi," Zach said. "If you're a dhampir, one of your parents has to be a Moroi and the other one is a dhampir. Or a human, I guess. So Adrian is probably Amy's dad. Right, Amy?"

Amy put her face in her hands and didn't answer.

Zach pressed on, not sure what was wrong. "But he's not your dad, because you're just a human." He looked up at his mother, who was standing over him, glowering. "Sorry," he added. "I didn't mean to say _just_ a human. Humans are cool, too. I mean, you're the first human I ever really met, and you seem ok... ." He trailed off, looking concerned. "Um. What's wrong, Mom?"

Rose sighed, her eyes closing. "Didn't I tell you not to say anything about dhampirs or Moroi or anything?" she said. Adrian had already gotten up from the table and had hesitantly begun to draw closer. Dimitri was waiting at the table, probably not wanting to intrude.

"But she asked... ." Zach said.

Violet's eyes were huge, and her chest was heaving. "Mommy," she said, in an intense whisper. "What does he mean? Why did he say that? Mommy?"

"Come here," I said. "Let's talk about it."

"Why did he say that?" she repeated. "Why why why _whywhywhywhy_..."

"I'll tell you, but you have to calm down a little," I said, kneeling by her. Zach and Cole had both backed off, clearly not wanting to make matters worse. Amy had crawled closer, wanting to comfort her sister, but not knowing how.

"See, sweetie, Adrian is actually Amy's dad," I said. "I used to know Adrian a long time ago, before I married your father. I loved him – Adrian – very much even back then, and we, um, we made Amy. But your father didn't know that. It's kind of complicated. But your father is still _your_ father... ." I trailed off, seeing tears glinting in Violet's eyes.

"I don't understand," she said, in a choked voice.

"Listen," I said to Violet, as Adrian knelt down next to me. "Nothing's really changed. I'm still your Mommy. Your father, the one in North Carolina, he's still your father. Adrian and I still love you. Amy is still your sister, well, your half-sister, but she's still your sister, and don't worry, she's not a Moroi. She doesn't suck blood or anything like that."

"I'm still the same," Amy said, tears shining in her eyes. "It's ok, Vy-Vy."

"You're _her_ father," Violet said, looking at Adrian.

"Yes, I'm her father," Adrian said. "But sweetheart –"

"You like _her_ better," Violet interrupted, looking at Adrian accusingly.

"Of course not," Adrian said, trying to put an arm around the little girl, but Violet stood up, evading his grasp, as the tears started to course down her cheeks.

"Don't cry, Violet," Amy said, awkwardly. "Vy-Vy, please don't cry."

"Oh, little Miss Purple," Adrian said. "Don't be upset. This doesn't change anything."

"Yes it does!" Violet said. "It's all different. You're a bad vampire-man and you're mean and you like Amy better than me and … and... and I hate you!" And she stamped her foot.

"Sweetheart," I said. "Please, come here."

"NO!" she shouted. "I hate _you_, too! _All of you_!" And she ran out of the room, towards the front hall.

"Oh, god," Rose said, softly. "I'm sorry. I should have been more clear with the boys."

"Yes, you should have," I said, too upset to be polite. "But what's done is done. I'll go get her."

"No," Adrian said, his hand on my arm. "I'll do it."

"Adrian, you're sweet to offer, but she needs her mom," I said.

"No," he said again, shaking his head. "She needs _me_."

For a moment, we stared each other down. I wanted to go to Violet myself, but I had a feeling that Adrian might be right. Reluctantly, I stepped aside and let him go into the front hall, but I followed him at a respectful distance. I was going to let him try, but I'd be ready to step in if I was needed.

Out in the front hall, we both spotted a small pair of legs showing under a wooden end table near the door. It was the kind of table that could fold up to produce a large eating area, but could also fold down so that the long wooden leaves hung down on each side. Adrian got down on his hands and knees and crawled under the table, moving awkwardly in the small space. His legs were way too long for him to fit under there, and his bent knees were practically banging against the top of the wooden leaf.

"Go away!" said a sullen, tear-streaked voice from under the table.

"Hi, Miss Purple," Adrian said, a little hesitantly.

"My _name_ is Violet," Violet said, through gritted teeth.

"I thought you liked it when I called you Miss Purple," Adrian said.

"No," Violet said, emphatically. "No. I hate it. I hate _you_."

"I see," Adrian said. "Well, I don't hate _you_, sweetheart. In fact, I like you a lot."

"I don't care," Violet said, relentlessly. "I hate you. Go away."

I sat down on the floor so that I could get a better view of them. I was partially hidden behind a wall, so it would be hard for them to see me.

"Do you think that maybe we could come out from under this table?" Adrian suggested, in a reasonable tone. "It's sort of... cramped under here, isn't it?"

"No," Violet said. "I'm too mad. Go away."

"I can't go away," Adrian said. He looked unperturbed, though I knew he was probably in emotional overdrive. "You're my friend, and you're upset, so I have to hang out here with you until you feel a little better."

"I'm not upset," Violet said. "I'm mad."

"Why are you mad, Miss – Violet?"

"Because it's not _fair_. You're Amy's daddy. You like her better than me."

"No I don't," Adrian said. "I like you both the same."

"No you don't," Violet said. "You like her better because she's your daughter and I'm not and you'll never like me the same as you like her, ever ever ever." She sniffed loudly. "And it's not _fair_."

"Oh, Violet," Adrian said. "I know you're not my daughter. I knew that the first day I met you, in DC. But I still like you every bit as much as I like Amy. That's because you're such a cool little kid. You're smart and funny and sweet and generous. I'm so happy that I get to be friends with you."

"But you're not my daddy," Violet said. "It's not fair."

"I know," Adrian said. His voice had lost its surface calm. "I agree. It's not fair at all. That other guy – Mr. Reznick – he got to be around you your whole life. He got to see your first steps and hear your first words and all that stuff. And I missed it. I missed everything, because I didn't even know you yet, or Amy either. And the worst part is, I think Mr. Reznick didn't even know how lucky he was. He had two nice, smart, awesome girls in his life – well, three if we count your mom, who is also awesome – and he just didn't know it." He paused, then added in an earnest voice, "I wish that I _were_ your dad, sweetheart. I wish I had been there from the beginning for both of you."

A very long pause greeted that statement. Then Violet said, "I don't care. You're a vampire. I don't care if you're my dad or not. You're a bad, mean vampire-man and I hate you."

"Do you really think that?" Adrian said, very gently. "You're such a smart little girl. I think you're probably smarter than me, and I'm pretty smart. You don't _really_ think I'm a bad guy – do you?"

"Yes," Violet said. "You're going to turn mean."

"No," Adrian said. "I won't."

"Yes, you are," Violet said. "One day you're going to wake up and decide you don't like me or Amy or Mommy anymore. Especially me. And you're going to drink all our blood, all up, like this." She made a slurping noise. "And then you're going to move to Spain."

"To Spain?" Adrian said.

"Yes," Violet said.

"Why to Spain?" Adrian asked.

"I don't _know_," Violet said, and started to cry again.

In the silence that ensued, I wracked my brain to try to figure out what Violet was talking about. I finally remembered that a friend of hers in kindergarten had moved to Spain. It must have been the furthest away place that she could think of.

"I won't move to Spain unless I take you all with me," Adrian said. "It's nice in Spain, although the sun is sort of strong. In Barcelona, they serve mojitos on the beach. And you can go to a restaurant where they serve nothing but sausage and cheese on little toothpicks. I'll take you sometime, if you want to go." He paused, then added, "Maybe when you're older, though."

"No," Violet said. "Go away." But most of the force had gone out of her voice.

"I've been away long enough," Adrian said. "But now that I'm here, maybe it'd be fun to hang out with you and your mom and sister for a while, if you'll let me. I mean, you might need someone like me to give you piggyback rides and draw pictures for you and stuff."

"No," Violet said, again. "Go away."

"Aren't we friends anymore?" Adrian asked. "I thought we were friends."

"No," Violet said, and it came out as a sob this time. "No. I hate you. You're mean."

"Oh," Adrian said, and paused. I briefly considered intervening, but almost immediately rejected the idea. They needed to finish this conversation, no matter what happened. "Well," Adrian said, after a moment. "I definitely can't leave _now_. Now I have to stay under this table too, because now I'm too sad to come out."

After a pause, Violet said, once again, "Go away."

"I can't," Adrian said. "I mean, not only are you not really my daughter, which totally sucks, but you don't even like me anymore. Who is going to give me a hug the next time I have a bad dream?"

"I don't care," Violet said.

A long silence followed. Finally, Adrian said, softly, as if he were talking to himself, "Wow. I'm terrible at this."

After a moment, Violet said in a sullen voice, "Terrible at what?"

"I don't know, this, like, father-y stuff," Adrian said. "You hate me and won't even talk to me. It's really... difficult. I just wanted to help you, Violet. But I guess I don't know how."

I waited, fingers crossed. Violet had turned to look at Adrian, clearly surprised. I remembered a line from a book I'd read as a child, a book called _A Little Princess_: "A new idea will stop a crying child when nothing else will." Violet was a gentle little girl, and I knew she didn't like to see other people upset. She unclenched her fists, slowly. Then she said, in the same sullen voice, "I don't '_hate-_you' hate-you. I just _sort_ of hate you."

"That's good to know, I guess," Adrian said.

Another long pause passed. Then Violet said, for the hundredth time, "It's not fair."

"I know," he said. "Oh, sweetheart. I know that. I should have been there from the first day, for both of you. I would have been a lot nicer than … Mr. Reznick was."

"My dad wasn't _always_ mean to _me_," Violet said, sounding more sad than angry now. "But he was mean to Mommy and he was mean to Amy and I was scared that he would get mean to me, too. And then... ." She sniffed loudly.

"Then he did," Adrian said.

Violet sniffed, then nodded vigorously. "He was really mean," she said, in an intense whisper. "It was so scary. He hit me, and he hit Amy, and there was lightening everywhere, and he fell down, and it was... so scary." She sniffed again. "I was scared when we were at the old house with the bad guys, too, especially when the house got on fire, but it was worse with Daddy."

"It was scary for me too," Adrian said. "I'm sorry, Violet. I wish I could have... protected you. You're one of my favorite people on the whole planet."

"But Amy's your real _real_ favorite," Violet said, sounding miserable.

"No," Adrian said. "You're both my favorite."

"What about Mommy?" Violet asked.

"She's my favorite grownup," Adrian said. "Isn't she your favorite, too?"

"Yes," Violet said. "But I'm mad at her right now."

"Right," Adrian said, as my heart sank in my chest. Violet had a good reason to be angry with me, but still, it hurt to hear her say it.

"It's not fair," Violet said, yet again. "Why are you Amy's daddy and _not mine_?" The last two words were punctuated by the sound of her little fist pounding on the floor.

"Bad luck," Adrian said. "I wish I could just push a button and be your dad. That would be so cool."

There was an even longer pause, and then Violet said again, "Really?"

"Really really," Adrian said. "You're a cool kid, and I bet you're going to grow up to be a cool bigger kid. Then you'll probably be an annoying teenager, but still kind of cool. And then you'll be a cool grownup. But I'll still be stuck under this table because I'll be so sad."

"Don't be sad," Violet said. I saw a little hand patting his shin awkwardly.

"But I am sad," Adrian said, dramatically. "So I'll stay here. I'm just going to have to eat bugs that crawl by and stuff. I hope that there's a leak in the ceiling so I can get some water to drink."

Violet giggled. "You're being silly," she said. Then she remembered she was supposed to be upset, and sniffed a few times very loudly.

"No, I'm not," Adrian said, as if deeply injured. "I'm hiding under the table because I'm sad. Don't laugh at me."

Violet tried to stifle a giggle, but couldn't. "You're not hiding very well," she said. "I think anyone could see you. You're too big to be under here."

"I know," Adrian said, very sadly. "That's another reason I'm sad. I don't even know how to hide." He sniffed loudly.

"Then get out from under the table!" Violet said, unable to control her giggles at all by now. "Silly!"

"I can't," Adrian said. "I'm too sad that I'm not really your father."

Violet's giggles slowed again, then stopped. "If you _were_, though," she said. "If you were _really_ my father, would you stay nice forever?"

"I'm going to stay nice to you forever anyway, Violet," Adrian said.

"But if you _were_," she insisted.

"If I were your dad, I would stay nice forever," Adrian said. "Even if you crashed my car."

"Really?" Violet asked.

"Really," he said, and went on, warming to the theme as he went. "If I were your dad, and you had a mean teacher, I would go to the school and yell at the teacher and say, 'Hey, that's my daughter, she's smart and great, so be nice to her.' And if there was a mean bully at school, I would sneak up on him when he least expected it, and I would show him my big vampire teeth, like this" – and he showed his fangs – "and say, 'Don't hurt my daughter or I'll hurt you right back,' so he'd leave you alone. And if I were your dad, I would paint a picture on your bedroom wall of whatever you wanted."

"Even a turtle-horse?" Violet asked.

"Especially a turtle-horse," Adrian said. "I would paint two of them, if you wanted. And if I were your dad, I would learn how to make your fried eggs just right with no yucky burnt parts. And... ." His voice dropped a little. "If I were your dad, I would come to you whenever you cried and I would cheer you up, even if it was the middle of the night."

"And you would never, _ever_ be mean and hit me and Amy?" Violet asked.

"Never, ever, ever," Adrian said. "I wouldn't hit you or yell at you or make you feel bad. And I would never move to Spain without you, either." He paused, then added, "I guess it's too bad I'm not really your dad, huh?"

A very long pause greeted this, and I wondered if he'd made a wrong move. But then Violet said, in the voice she usually reserved for children smaller than her, "We can _pretend_ that you're my dad. Would that help?"

"Maybe," Adrian said, as if mulling it over thoughtfully. "Would I get to read you stories, and give you piggy-back rides, and everything?"

"Yes," Violet said, in an intense whisper. "Definitely."

"Can I draw you pictures of weird animals, and make funny faces at you at the table?"

"Yes," she said again.

"Can we start pretending right now?" Adrian asked.

Violet paused. "Yes," she said, then added, uncertainly, "Should I call you 'Dad' from now on?"

"Only if you want to," Adrian said. "I've gotten used to Mr. Adrian, actually. But you can call me anything you want."

"Ok," Violet said. "Ok, Mr. Adrian."

"Can I call you Miss Purple again?" Adrian asked.

"Yes," she said again.

"Well, then, Miss Purple," Adrian said. "Can we come out from under the table now, do you think?"

"Um," she said, and whispered something to him so quietly that I couldn't hear her. Adrian could, and I saw him gather her into his arms as best he could.

"I promise, Miss Purple," he said. "Forever and ever."

"Ok," she said.

They let go of one another, and then Adrian awkwardly dug into his pocket and pulled out a tissue, which he used to wipe Violet's nose. "There you go, sweetheart," he said.

"Thanks," she whispered, and they came out from under the table.

I found a tissue in my own pocket and used it to dab the tears out of my eyes, then got to my feet so that we could all see each other.

"Hi, you two," I said, in a choked voice. "Violet, are you feeling a little bit better now?"

"A little bit," she said. She looked down at her feet. "I'm sorry," she said.

"It's ok," I said, and went to her. "Everyone gets upset sometimes."

She hugged me tightly. "I wasn't upset," she said. "I was mad."

"Ok," I said. "Well, maybe you and your dad can go out to the living room, and then you can play some more with the other kids."

She stared at me, deciding how to react to my statement. Then she nodded. "Ok," she said. "I'll go with Dad." Then she took Adrian's hand.

"Piggy-back?" Adrian offered, and got down on his haunches to let Violet climb up on his shoulders. Then they went out into the living room, the sounds of Violet's giggles trailing behind them. I took a few moments to compose myself, then followed them out into the living room.

Rose was sitting at the table, rubbing at the corners of her eyes. She must have heard every word of that conversation. In fact, I realized, everyone else in the room was a dhampir and would have heard it just fine, which explained why nearly everyone looked to be in the throes of some kind of severe allergy attack.

As Adrian deposited a giggling Violet down on the ground, I saw Dimitri step forward to play dutiful father. "Is there something you want to say?" he said, pushing Zach gently towards Violet.

"Sorry," the boy said. "Sorry I made you cry, Violet."

"It's ok," Violet said. "You didn't do it on purpose."

"Do you want to play Legos?" he asked. "Or trains? We have some trains, too."

"No cars?" Violet asked.

"We have cars," Cole interjected. "But girls don't like cars."

"Our mom fixes cars," Amy said, proudly. "She's good at it." Both boys stared at me in surprise, and I shrugged.

As the boys began digging through their toys to find their best cars to show off, Amy turned to Violet and said, softly, "Vy-Vy? Um, I'm sorry. Are you ok now?"

"I'm ok, Aim-Aim," Violet said. "Do you want to pretend that we're still sisters?"

"We are still sisters," Amy said. "Not just for pretend. For real life."

Violet looked at me.

"You're half-sisters, it's called," I said. "But that's still sisters."

"Let's pretend we're _two_-halves sisters," Violet said. "Like the best-friend necklaces that are in two-pieces, and they come together to make one heart..."

"Yes," Amy said, as if what Violet had said made sense. "Just like that." She hugged Violet. "You can still borrow my tricorder. Sometimes. If I'm not already using it."

"Ok," Violet said. She paused. "And you can sit with me in my window seat. Sometimes."

As the two girls gave each other a hug, I sat down at the table, feeling as if a hundred years had passed since I'd stood up from it a few minutes ago. Adrian joined me, and took my hand.

"She's ok?" he asked, quietly.

"Think so," I said.

A soft thud on the table made us both look up. It was Rose, dropping a huge box of tissues on the table.

"You guys," she said, pulling a tissue out and blowing her nose loudly. "Seriously. Just... I _can't_ with you guys."

"Can't what?" Dimitri asked.

"Can't _even_," Rose said, and dabbed at her eyes.

"Ah," said Dimitri.

Adrian kissed my hand, then passed me a tissue, keeping one for himself. "You ok, Sage?" he asked.

"Yes," I said, hearing an echo of Violet's excited whisper in my own voice.

_Thanks to **MarijaV** for telling me about a really dumb mistake I made. :)  
_


	22. Artist and Mechanic

**Chapter 22: Artist and Mechanic**

As I walked into the lobby of Adrian's apartment building, I heard someone calling to me. I was always worried that someone would think I didn't belong in the fancy apartment complex, and I was especially worried today, since I had on my dirty work clothes. But the person calling to me was the doorman, and he greeted me with a smile. "Your gentleman told me to give you this," he said, and handed me a small folded piece of paper. I thanked him and read the note.

_S,_

_Go to the studio please..._

_-A_

_ps: don't change or clean up! _

_pps: xoxo_

I looked down at myself. Today, Monday, had been my first day of work at Al's Garage, a local service center. Al had agreed to hire me on a part-time basis after hearing a glowing report of me from my old boss. My first day had gone really well; I had tackled a fragile old motor that the other mechanics had been hesitant to touch, and I'd won the respect of my new boss when I brought the engine into good working order in a few hours. All in all, it had been a good day, but I was definitely the worse for wear. My fingers and clothes were dirty, and I knew I smelled of motor oil and gasoline.

I decided to disregard the note's orders, and I went up to the apartment instead. It was the first time I'd unlocked the door with my own key, and I felt a little like I was breaking in to a place where I wasn't supposed to be. But my discomfort melted away when I saw, waiting on the small table by the door, a bouquet of flowers – tulips, mostly, with a few celery sticks added for emphasis. Next to the flowers was a note:

_S,_

_Whatever happened to being good at following directions? _

_-A_

_ps: I knew you'd come up here first._

_pps: Love you anyway._

There was a "ppps," too, that was suggestive enough to make me blush. I put the note in my pocket, looking around for the girls. Amy was supposed to be at karate by now, but where was Violet? Since she wasn't around, I assumed she had to be with Adrian at the studio. I gave myself a few minutes to freshen up, careful not to spoil the general impression of "dirty mechanic." I scrubbed my fingers a little, and wiped a few streaks of oil off my face. When I was satisfied, I left for the studio, which was just one floor down from our apartment. Adrian had taken possession of it a few days ago, on the first of March, and had spent a lot of time over the past few days getting it set up.

I ran down the flight of stairs and knocked on the door at the end of the hall. Adrian opened the door, and I took in the sight of him: shirtless, in a pair of dark jeans, with bits of paint splattered over his arms and chest. "Hello, gorgeous," he said, and pulled me inside, kissing me before I had a chance to even respond. We closed the door with our bodies, kissing with a rising heat, and my purse fell out of my hand and onto the floor as I moved to dig my fingernails into his back.

"Hi," I managed, when his mouth left mine so that he could kiss my neck instead. "Nice to see you, too."

He straightened up to look me in the eye, then grinned. "Sorry," he said. "That got a little out of hand. I really just meant to kiss you hello."

"Yeah, it was a little much," I said, in a disapproving tone, then squeezed his butt.

"Hey!" he said, in mock outrage, and I grinned and let him go.

"Where's Violet?" I asked, looking around guiltily. I hoped she hadn't seen our little display.

"She's at karate with Amy," he said. "I'm not about to kiss you like that in front of her, don't worry."

"She's at _karate_?" I repeated, incredulously.

"Yeah, when I took Amy to the dojo, Violet said she wanted to join the class. The teacher said there was room for her, so I signed her up." He shrugged. "Was that ok? Should I have called you first or something? It seemed like something you'd be ok with."

"More than ok!" I said, happily. "I mean, sure, call me next time I guess, but wow, I can't believe that Violet wants to take karate. She's always been really timid about physical activities. Once she cried in gym class because she didn't want to play kickball."

Adrian smiled. "Well, now she wants to take karate," he said. "And wait until you see her in her little outfit. And Amy, too. I would have stayed to watch the whole practice, except that I wanted to get home to you." He gave me another quick kiss. "And want to hear the best part?"

"Better than Violet wanting to take karate?"

"Maybe not _better_, but still cool," he said. "Their little friend, you know, the one from the fifth floor? She's in the class with them..."

"Ronnie?" I said, supplying the name that Adrian had obviously forgotten. We had met Ronnie in the elevator a few days after we'd moved in, and she and the girls had become fast friends. She was a cute, talkative little girl, African-American, with two pigtails that were always decorated with mismatched beaded rubber bands. She was in third grade and somehow even more energetic than Amy, but surprisingly patient with Violet, considering the age gap.

"Yeah, Ronnie," he said. "Nice kid, though she makes Jill look like the quiet type." I smiled, remembering Jill's tendency to run off at the mouth. "Anyway," Adrian went on, "her mom said she'd give the girls a ride home after class, and then they'd have a little playdate. I said we'd pick them up at their apartment at 6 o'clock or so."

I glanced at my watch. It was just after 4 pm. "So," I said. "What were you planning to do with the next two hours?"

"Sketch you, of course," he said. "Why do you think I wanted you to come to the studio?"

"Oh," I said, feeling a tiny bit disappointed. I had thought there was something else on his mind. After all, _there usually_ was. "Ok then," I added. "Give me the tour."

"Gladly," he said, taking me by the hand. "See this room?"

"Yes..."

"And thus concludes our tour," he said, and I hit him on the arm. "Seriously, Sage, there isn't much to see. But, ok, the space was designed to be a one-bedroom apartment, so I have paintings in progress, stuff I don't want people to see yet, in there." He gestured to the bedroom, the door to which was closed. "But the light here in the living room is best, so this is where I plan to do most of my painting."

"It looks like a good place to paint," I said. The room was almost empty except for a futon couch, a few wooden chairs, and Adrian's art supplies, including a few milk crates of what had to be props for his paintings. An easel was set up on top of a large drop-cloth, and I noticed that the windows had been coated with something to filter the light a little, probably to make it safer for Moroi skin. I made a mental note to ask him about it later, since I was curious about the science behind it.

"If you want a Coke or anything, there's stuff in the fridge," Adrian said, gesturing to a kitchen area to one side of the room.

"No, thanks," I said.

"So you're ready for me to sketch you?" Adrian asked, and I said that I was. "Ok, come over here..." he said, and with one hand on each of my shoulders, he moved me right into the middle of the room, into a patch of sunlight. "Perfect," he said, looking at me from a few different angles. "Now, stay right there, and strike a pose that looks... mechanic-y."

"Mechanic-y?" I repeated. "Okay..." I posed looking up intently, as if I were looking at the underside of an engine on a lift, and once I explained to Adrian what I was supposed to be doing, he sat down on one of the chairs and began to sketch. For a moment, the only sound in the room was the soft sound of his pencil moving across the paper.

"What did the girls say about school today?" I asked him to break the silence. They'd been at school for one week so far, and I was hoping that their second Monday had gone even better than the first.

"They didn't say much about it," Adrian said. "I guess no news is good news, right? If something bad had happened, I'm sure they would have told me."

"Probably," I said, smiling grimly. "They're more likely to tell you than me."

"Jealous?" Adrian asked with a grin.

"A little," I admitted. "I've known them their whole lives and all of a sudden, you're their favorite."

"I can't help it if I'm awesome," Adrian said. "Girls just like talking to me, what can I say? Even seven year old girls."

"Did Violet tell you anything interesting on your day out yesterday?" I asked. A few days ago, Adrian and I had come up with the idea for "Daddy day," a day for Adrian to take each girl out alone on a Sunday. Amy had insisted that Violet go first, and yesterday Violet and Adrian had spent the afternoon together. "We didn't get a chance to talk about it last night," I added.

"Yeah, you and I got kind of distracted last night, didn't we?" Adrian said, winking at me. "The minute we were alone together, once the girls were asleep, we kind of forgot about talking..."

"Shh," I said. "Or we'll get distracted again."

"I've budgeted in time for that later," Adrian said, in what I realized was an impression of me. "But if I begin discussing my plan for distracting you, we might get... distracted." He winked.

"Fine," I said, smiling. So he _did_ have other things on his mind, I realized. "So tell me about Daddy Day instead," I suggested. "You lived through the movie, I guess?"

"Barely," Adrian said, making a face. "It was 'My Friendliest Magic Pony' or something like that, and wow, Sage. I haven't done a lot of drugs lately, but if I ever have to watch another movie like that, I might just have to indulge a little." He sighed. "If I never see another brightly colored singing pony again, it'll be too soon. But Violet loved it, and the day was supposed to be about her, so... I dealt."

"You did say she could pick _anything,_" I said, trying not to laugh as I pictured Adrian in a theater full of children, as prancing pink ponies covered the movie screen.

"I didn't know what I was getting into," Adrian answered, sighing theatrically, and I laughed. "But lunch was fun, anyway," he added. "We went to a diner for burgers and shakes, one of those places where the waitresses all dress up like it's the 1950s."

"Violet told me about that part last night, when I went to kiss her goodnight," I said. "She thought it was so cool that everyone thought that you were really her dad." Violet eyes had been shining with happiness, and I had thought to myself that it was nice to see happiness in her eyes, rather than tears.

Adrian smiled fondly. "It _was_ cool," he said. "One waitress swore up and down that she could see the family resemblance." He laughed. "Anyway, we got a chance to chat a little. Violet told me all about her first week at school."

"Did she tell you anything interesting?" It was starting to require a little concentration to keep my pose, and I was beginning to hope that Adrian would be done with his sketch pretty soon.

"Hmmmm... Her teacher is very nice, the class hamster is very cute, and, apparently, the boy who sits next to her is very nice _and_ very cute." Adrian made a face.

"Jealous?" I asked, calmly.

"_Concerned_," Adrian corrected. "I told her that if that boy was ever mean to her, I'd punch him in the face for her."

"I don't know if I should be pleased or worried that you're so protective already," I said.

"Hey, you should hear some of the things that fathers have said to me over the years," Adrian said. "Threatening to punch a boy in the face is tame compared to what Abe Mazur used to threaten to do to me."

I thought of what my own father would say to Adrian, and pushed the thought away. "I used to be so frightened of Mr. Mazour," I said. "Well, not frightened, exactly, but _intimidated._"

"He always liked you," Adrian said. "He knew before any of us did just how... spunky you are."

I didn't really want to talk about my ancient dealings with Abe, so I changed the subject. "Well, anyway, while you and Violet were having your day out, I had a nice day with Amy."

"That's good," Adrian said, blending a few lines with a damp finger. "What did you two get up to?"

"We went for a walk to explore the neighborhood a little," I said. "We had lunch at a little cafe and just hung out. It was nice to spend some time with her, make sure that she's doing ok."

"_Is_ she?" Adrian asked. "She's not freaking out about being a dhampir or anything?"

"No," I said. "She always knew she was different. Now she knows why, and I guess it makes things easier for her."

"That's good," Adrian said, with obvious relief. "Did she tell you anything about school, anything I don't know?"

"Did you hear about the dhampir in her grade?" I asked. When Adrian said no, I went on. "She told me that one of the boys in the other fourth grade class is a dhampir, but when she talked to him, he reacted to her presence but didn't seem to know what to make of her. She thinks that he doesn't know that he's a dhampir, or why she seems 'familiar.'"

"It might be that," Adrian said. "There might be a few dhampirs out there that don't know what they are. Or it must just be that this kid was too enchanted by our beautiful daughter to be able to move. I'll get the story out of her on Sunday, when we go have our little day out." He erased a few stray marks as he spoke, then continued sketching. "It's going to be a pain when the girls get old enough to date, trying to keep the boys from storming the house to get to them. I won't be able to sleep, waiting for them to come home from dates. I'll be in the living room, shotgun in hand..."

I wasn't quite sure if he was joking or not. So, to change the subject a little, I said, "It's better that than not being able to sleep because Violet is crying." Violet hadn't cried in the middle of the night at all since Rose's barbecue.

"Much better," Adrian said, emphatically.

"Thanks for helping her," I said. "I'm sure she'd still be crying every night if it wasn't for you."

Adrian waved away the compliment. "The help goes both ways," he said, vaguely, then held up the sketch. "I'm done – want to see?"

I walked over to look at the sketch. He had drawn me with a clipboard in my hand and a pencil behind my ear. The Sydney on the paper was beautiful, completely engaged in the shadowy mess of engine above her. "I like it," I said, slowly. "It's a lot less abstract than your pictures used to be."

"I like capturing you just as you are," Adrian said. "Can't improve on _that_." He grinned. "Well, maybe I can improve it a _little_ bit. Come here." I stepped a little closer, and he began unbuttoning my shirt.

"Hey!" I said. "For the record, I'm not posing nude."

"Why not?" he asked. "I won't show anyone."

For some reason, I didn't really want to pose for Adrian completely naked. It was one thing to be naked with him in the dark, or to pose for him in a dream, where I had control over my appearance. It was another thing altogether for him to stare at my body in the light, especially in _reality_. "I just don't want to," I said.

"How about this," he said. "Unbutton the workshirt, but leave it on, and leave your bra and underwear on, too. Just take the pants off. Is that ok?"

I considered it. It didn't seem so bad. "Ok," I said, slowly, and slipped the unflattering work pants off. I let Adrian unbutton my shirt, since he obviously enjoyed the process so much. He took the rubber band out of my hair and combed my hair out with his fingers so that it fell over my shoulders. Then he put a wooden chair right in the patch of light, and I sat down so that I was facing the back of the chair, my legs straddling the seat.

"Love that," he said. "But you're not dirty enough, Sydney." He came over to me with a small jar of dark brown paint and began to dab streaks on me with his fingers.

"Hey!" I said.

"It's non-toxic," he said, with a grin. "You're just not convincing as a mechanic right now, Sage." He put dirty looking smudges on my face, legs, and neck, then stepped back to admire the affect. "Almost perfect." He dug through his prop box and found a plastic wrench, probably a child's toy, and brought it over to me.

"What am I supposed to do with this?" I asked.

"Hold it," he said.

I leaned over the back of the chair, holding the wrench with both hands. "Like this?" I asked.

"Damn," he said, gazing at me. "I might not make it all the way through the sketch." He shook his head, smiling, and picked up his sketchbook. "You're gorgeous, Sydney," he said, and began sketching again.

"Sometime I should do a sketch of _you_ half-naked," I said. I meant it to be teasing, but he just smiled more widely.

"I wouldn't mind that," he said. "I wouldn't even mind if I was all-the-way-naked."

"Of course you wouldn't," I said. "You're not shy about your body."

"Are you?" he asked, looking up from the sketch.

"A little," I admitted. "For God's sake, Adrian, I've had two kids."

He shrugged. "I think you're hot, Sydney," he said. "I mean, I have a sacred duty to document, through art, your first day of work. But even so, it's difficult to keep from running over there and helping you out of your last few bits of clothes..."

"Is that so?"

"It is," he said. "But I am nothing if not dutiful... Hey, can you turn a little more to the right?"

"Ok," I said, turning my head slightly.

"Perfect," he said and went on. "I know it's hard for you to believe me. But you're just going to have to take my word for it. You're gorgeous."

"Ok," I said again, hoping he was serious. He seemed to be.

For a few moments, there was silence as he continued to sketch. The way he was looking at me was almost tangible – as if he were drawing directly on me, rather than on the paper. Oddly enough, I was starting to feel more confident, rather than more self-conscious, as he continued to sketch. He obviously just loved looking at me, as much as I loved looking at _him. _I was thinking about getting up and kissing him when he spoke.

"So, how was your first real day at work?" he asked. "You're probably the only multimillionaire mechanic on earth, you know."

"Part-time mechanic," I corrected. "I only work 10 am to 3 pm, Monday through Thursday."

"Still," he said. "I love that you still want to work, even though you're set up with cash. It's so you." He smiled. "So, _was_ it a good first day?"

"It was," I said. "It's not as homey as my old garage, but my boss is pretty nice so far, and the other mechanics didn't hassle me at all. Actually, they seem like nice guys."

"Nice?" Adrian asked, looking up from his sketch. "Are they good looking, too?"

I considered that. "Daryl's jaw is a bit too square for my taste," I said, "but I believe that for many women, such a masculine feature is considered desirable. John is ok, but I tend to find goatees unattractive. And Mark's eyes are too close together for real aesthetic success, I think."

Adrian put the sketch book and pencil down and came over to me. Without a word, he leaned down to give me a quick, forceful kiss.

"What was _that_ for?" I asked dizzily, as he returned to his seat.

"Just because you're so... you," he said. "I love it. I love _you_."

"I love you too," I said, as I tried to resume my pose.

"Just remember that, in case one of those mechanics hits on you," Adrian said, picking up his sketch book again.

"They don't stand a chance," I said.

"Well, to be on the safe side, I'll have to treat you really good," Adrian said. "Backrubs, footrubs..."

"Sounds good," I said.

"And, of course, to keep you extra happy, I intend to devote several hours a day to satisfying you in bed," Adrian said, casually, as if he were promising to do the dishes. "Every night, and most afternoons, too."

"Oh?" I said, trying to keep a normal tone to my voice.

"Like this afternoon, for instance," he said. "When we're done here, I intend to make you absolutely lose your mind. I mean, we're talking toe-curling, hair tossing, screaming at the top of your lungs kind of stuff." He glanced up at me with an evil grin. "Assuming you're in the mood for that kind of thing, of course," he added, politely.

"I might be," I said. Each breath seemed to not have quite enough oxygen in it. What was it about Adrian that no matter how many times we slept together, I still felt giddy at the mere thought of more?

"Good," he said, and continued sketching, while I continued trying to remember how to breathe. As he was watching me, I was watching him – the lines of his body as he sketched, the look of concentration on his face. Maybe I _would_ sketch him someday, I thought, or at least take pictures of him. I began to imagine a boudoir photo shoot: Adrian on a velvet bedspread, a rose in his teeth... Well, maybe not a _rose_, I thought.

After a while, Adrian spoke again, startling me from my thoughts. "I should paint you like this," he said. "Turn the sketch into a full blown painting and hang it on the ceiling of our room. Something to keep me company in case you go out of town without me."

"And have everyone who comes into our room see me like this?" I said, gesturing to my half-naked body.

He considered that. "Maybe not like _this_," he conceded.

"Couldn't you paint something _for_ me, instead of painting a picture _of_ me?" I asked.

"Like what?"

"I don't know," I said. "Something pretty."

"Oh, a self-portrait?" Adrian suggested, and I rolled my eyes. "Well, I've always thought it'd be fun to paint a fake window on the wall, you know, a trompe l'oeil, with a view of someplace famous. I could do that with someplace you like – Utah, maybe," he added, with a grin to show me he was just kidding.

"Athens or Rome might be nice," I suggested. "The moon rising over the Parthenon, maybe. Or a sunset in Tuscany."

"It might work," he said, then added, in a thoughtful tone, "Only thing is, if I paint right on the wall, then if we move to a new place, we won't be able to bring the painting with us."

"You still want to move?" I asked, surprised. "You have your studio now."

"Well, don't you think we'll want to move someday?" Adrian asked. "I mean, you guys moved into my apartment, and I know it probably doesn't feel like it's _yours_, too."

"That's true," I said, thinking of how I'd felt coming into the building just that afternoon.

"So it might be nice to get a place for us to really share. And it could be a real house, you know, with a backyard and everything. It could have a garage for you to fix up your own cars, a built in studio for me, a backyard playground for the girls..."

"We could move to one of those communities with a shared indoor pool," I said.

"Or just build our own indoor pool," Adrian said. "Neither of us is exactly poor, honeydew."

I grinned at the old nickname. "I don't like wasting money," I said.

"Fair enough," Adrian said. "But still. A bigger house would be nice, right? With a few extra bedrooms – one for guests, and one for... you know, if we wanted to have another kid or something."

"What?" I said, wondering if I'd heard him right.

"You know," Adrian said, and looked down at his sketch book. "Another kid."

I let him draw in silence for a few minutes. Then I said, "Do you really want to have another child?"

"I figure it's more up to you than me," Adrian said. "Like, you're the one who has to go through the physical part of it. But..." He looked up at me. "I... wouldn't mind, Sydney. I mean, if you don't think it would upset Violet too much. And if you wanted to."

"You'll have to give me time to think about that," I said. "I mean, I never thought you'd want... a baby. I mean, considering that we already have two kids around here."

"I guess I'd like a chance to be there from the beginning," Adrian said. "But, like I said, only if you want to." Something about the casual way he was talking about the topic made me think that it really did matter to him.

"I'll, um, think about it," I said, a little flustered.

"Ok," Adrian said, nodding.

"We wouldn't have as much time for sex if we had a baby," I added, waiting for his reaction.

"We'll just need to get a nanny to look after the baby for an hour or two every day, while I take you somewhere and look after _you_," Adrian said. "Give you a neck rub, and a foot rub, and then rub a few other spots on you..."

"Adrian!"

"You're cute when you blush," he said, getting up and coming towards me. "Ok," he said, holding out his sketch book to me. "What do you think?"

I took the sketch book and let him take the stupid wrench from me. The sketch was more abstract than the previous one, and the image was more stylized. Adrian had drawn me with an amazed, intense look on my face – probably the look I'd worn when he'd begun talking about "satisfying" me. What should have been a sexy picture, considering my state of undress, was oddly tender, though. The emphasis was more on my eyes and hair than on my breasts or bare legs. I didn't exactly want to show the sketch to people, but I felt like it anyone saw it, they would have seen evidence of Adrian's love for me, not just his sexual attraction.

"It's beautiful," I said.

"I just draw what I see," he said.

I put the sketch down and took his hands. "Thank you," I said, and kissed his knuckles.

"Come here," he said, and I stood up from the chair. He knocked the chair over to get closer to me, then slid the shirt off of my shoulders and let it fall to the floor. We started kissing again, and almost instantly that passion began to build up again.

"Adrian," I murmured happily, as his lips brushed my ears, my neck, my lips. My hands dug into the bare skin of his back.

"Sydney," he whispered, running his fingers over one of the fake "grease" spots he'd painted on me. "You're so dirty from work. We should get you into the shower."

"Oh, yeah," I said, absently. I began walking backwards, and Adrian "steered" me as we walked, still kissing, toward the bathroom.

Once we stepped inside the small room, Adrian paused to light a few candles that were scattered around on various shelves. I saw that he'd hung up a shower curtain, and there were two fluffy bathrobes waiting on hooks on the door. There was also a selection of bath products in the shower – Adrian's choices, clearly. He had planned for the "shower" part of the afternoon, that was obvious enough.

"Come here," he said, when he was done lighting the candles, and I put my arms around him. We helped each other out of our remaining clothes, which we tossed out into the living room. Then Adrian closed the door and gestured for me to get into the shower, saying, "Ladies first."

I stepped into the shower and turned on the hot water. Adrian stepped in behind me, so that the hot water was falling mostly on me, not on him. "We'll have to install two shower-heads in here," he said, running his hands up and down my arms. "Make this the perfect two person shower."

"Good idea," I said, as we turned so that Adrian could get some of the hot water. We were facing each other now, the water falling on our shoulders. I moved to kiss him, but he pulled away.

"Not yet, Sage," he said, with a grin. "You're still _much_ too dirty."

Then he picked up a bottle of shower gel and began to clean the dirt and paint off of my skin. I knew he was just as turned on as I was – it was pretty obvious – but he didn't hurry. Instead, he let his fingers travel slowly over every inch of my wet body, turning me around so that he could reach my back, pausing to massage my sore muscles. When he was done cleaning me, I turned to face him, wanting to kiss him so badly that I could hardly breathe. I took the soap from him to wash the paint off of his chest and arms - it took a bit of scrubbing, which I didn't mind in the least. And though there wasn't any paint on his lower half, I made sure that was clean, too. When I put the soap back on the shelf, we looked at each other for a fraction of a second before we flew at each other, my hands gripping his wet hair, his body slippery against mine, the water from the shower the only thing in between us.

"Not here," Adrian whispered, near my ear. "Let's go out to the bedroom."

I made an incoherent noise and reached forward to turn off the water. We both put on bathrobes, and then Adrian took a towel from the rack and gently dried my hair, my face, and then the rest of my body, moving the folds of the bathrobe aside to reach me. I did the same for him, loving the soft sighs I coaxed out of him as stroked his body.

Once we were both more or less dry, we ran through the cold studio into the bedroom, where, it turned out, Adrian had put a full-sized bed. He'd even remembered pillows and sheets. We fell down onto the bed, and our bathrobes soon formed big white piles on the floor. Adrian surprised me by pulling a condom out from under the pillow – he'd really thought of everything – and soon we were moving together. It was a relief to finally be together, so close – a relief to have Adrian where I'd wanted him. I almost didn't want it to end, but the end, when it did come, was inexpressibly sweet.

Afterward, we lay under the duvet together, hands clasped, giggling about nothing in particular, until I heard my cell phone ringing in my purse out in the main room.

"Don't get it," Adrian said, in a low voice.

"It might be Amy or Violet," I said as I got up and ran for the phone. Adrian followed me with our bathrobes, draping one around me as I dug through my purse.

When I found the phone, though, I nearly dropped it again in surprise.

"Who is it?" Adrian asked, putting his own bathrobe on.

"My father," I said, in a low voice. I sat down on the floor, and Adrian put his arm around me as I hit the button to begin the call.

_A/N: I'm trying to keep this roughly T-rated – kind of as dirty as the books themselves are, maybe like 5-10% dirtier, but not by much. Let me know if you think I went too far and should make this M – not like it matters so much on this site. If, on the other hand, you're disappointed that I don't go into more detail, then you can always read my other story, The Door in the Tree, which is M rated, not just for sex, but also for violence and adult themes. At this point, it's about as long as two or three books, and has some fairly... specific scenes. Or you can be lazy and read my lemon, Do You Trust Me, which is an expanded version of one of the chapters from DITT. _


	23. I Can Help You With That

**Chapter 23: I Can Help You With That**

_AKA It's Easier to Be Brave When Someone Loves You_

"Hi, Dad," I said, in as pleasant a tone as I could manage. Adrian sat down next to me so he could pull me even closer, and I leaned against him, grateful for his presence.

"What did I do to offend you?" Dad said, with no preamble.

"Um, nothing, recently," I said, confused.

"Then why did you send back Violet's present?"

"What– "

"If you didn't want me to send it to you, you could have said so. It would have saved me some money on postage."

"I don't know –" I said, but even as I spoke, I remembered that my father had mentioned that he was going to put Violet's birthday present in the mail. "Oh, gosh, Dad," I said. "I didn't return any packages to you. It must have been Rick." As my father began to reply, I scrambled to my feet in agitation, and Adrian stood up with me. He helped me get my arms into my bathrobe, and I smiled my thanks.

"_Rick_," my dad said, in a scornful tone. "I should have known. Is he around? Can I talk to him? I'd like to give him a piece of my mind."

"He's not around," I said, as Adrian tied my bathrobe shut for me. "Um... You haven't heard anything, have you?"

"Heard anything about what?" Dad asked. "Did something happen, Sydney?"

Adrian, who could hear my dad's words as clearly as he could hear mine, whispered, very quietly, "You can do this, Sydney."

"I left Rick," I said, and waited for my father to either hang up on me or begin a long, angry tirade on the evils of divorce.

But he did neither of those things. Instead, he simply said, "Well. What do you know. Hmmph." Then he fell silent.

"Um, are you ok?" I asked, when it seemed clear that he wasn't going to say anything else.

"I guess I should be asking _you_ that," Dad said, gruffly. "Do you need anything? Money, maybe?"

"Thank you, but I'm ok," I said politely. "I have some money saved up, and the world always needs a good mechanic."

"That's true enough," Dad said. "And you're a good mechanic, Sydney. Probably better than a few men out there."

"Thanks, Dad," I said, trying not to sound as annoyed as I was starting to feel. I was better than most mechanics, male or female.

"Just like your mother," Dad went on. "She had an eye for that sort of thing. Did I ever tell you about the time that she got the neighbor's old Toyota up and running with just an old coat hanger?"

"Yes, Dad," I said, gently. "And I was there when it happened, too. It was really cool."

"She just fiddled around with that thing for a few minutes, and next thing you know, bang, it's up and running."

"I know, Dad," I said. "Mom really was a whiz with cars."

"She was," Dad said, in the softest tone I could ever remember hearing him use. "She... she..." I heard him cough on the other end of the line, and then he said, in a different, brisker tone, "You should move back home. At least until you get things sorted out with Rick."

"Thanks for the offer, but I'm staying with a friend for a while," I said, not sure how to explain that I wasn't going to be working anything out with Rick – that the divorce was already final.

"What friend is this? How do you know her?"

"Oh, we met a while ago," I said, letting his misunderstanding slide. Adrian smiled at my sneaky reply, then gestured first to himself, then to the bedroom. I understood the implied question: _Should I go in the bedroom and give you your privacy?_ I took his hand and pulled it to my chest. _Don't go anywhere_, I was saying. "Anyway, we're all fine here, so don't worry," I told my father.

"Ok," Dad said, uncertainly. "But really, you're welcome to come back home, if you want. You can have your old room, and the girls can share Carly's old room."

"Well –" I said, but my father interrupted again.

"It'd be nice to have you around," he said. "With your mother gone, there's no one here but me. The children would cheer up the place."

I felt my brow beginning to crease in my confusion. Was this the same man who forbade my sisters and me from playing games in the living room because it distracted him from reading the paper? Was this the same man who took away all my toys when I turned ten, saying it was time for me to grow up? My confusion and annoyance churned in my head, and I said, as calmly as I could, "You didn't seem to find my sisters and me so cheering, back in the day, sir." Adrian gave me the thumbs up sign.

My dad laughed uncomfortably. "I guess not," he said. "What can I say? We all change as we age, Sydney. Maybe I've changed a little, too."

"Maybe," I said. "I guess that's possible." Adrian rolled his eyes.

"Do you want to tell me what happened with Rick?" Dad asked.

"It's kind of hard to exp—"

"Did he hit you or anything? Because if he _did_..."

"He never hit me," I said, lying by omission. Rick had done his abusing in other ways, ways that maybe were worse. "But he was planning to leave me for a mistress. And the last night before I left, he hit the children out of anger."

There was a long silence. Then my father said, "I never liked that man."

"I thought you –"

"Never," Dad said, more firmly, though I had clear memories of the two of them chatting happily about all sorts of things, whenever they were together. "And I'll tell you something, Sydney," Dad went on. "I better not hear anything about you going back to him."

"I don't intend to," I said.

"Good," he said. "A lot of young women are very foolish when it comes to men."

"I promise, Dad, I won't go back to Rick."

"You had better keep that promise, Sydney. And I'll tell you this, too: he is done in the church. _Done_. If he ever shows his face in alchemist society again, he'll have some serious explaining to do. I still hold _some_ sway in the church, you know."

"I know, sir," I said.

"A mistress," Dad said, scoffing. "As if he'd find someone better than you." He let out a gruff, angry noise, as if he were personally offended by Rick's actions. "You're clearly a fine young woman, highly educated, pleasant looking, above average intelligence, healthy..."

Adrian shook his head in annoyed disbelief, and I sighed. "Thanks, Dad, for the vote of confidence," I said. "But I'm not upset about this. Really. Honestly, I would have left him sooner, but you know Rick. He would have made up some lies about me to make sure I could keep the kids. He'd say I did drugs, say I was cheating, whatever he felt like he had to do."

"Well, no one here will believe a word that comes out of that man's mouth," my dad said. "I have half a mind to go to North Carolina myself and pop him one, right in the eye. Of course, I'm an old man now. Not in my prime anymore. He might just pop me one back." He let out a weird bark of laughter.

I remembered a time when my dad would have believed anyone over me – when Keith, the rapist, had been the voice of wisdom, when Carly and I were shuffled to the side and ignored. I swallowed heavily. "Dad," I said, tentatively. "What changed?"

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Why are you all of a sudden on my side?" I asked. "You never were before." I couldn't believe my daring, but I had to ask.

Adrian whispered very softly: "Good job, sweetheart."

"I've always been on your side," Dad said, clearly surprised by the question. "Always."

"No, you haven't," I said. "Come on, Dad. Keith? Siberia, and the problem with Rose Hathaway? The whole thing with Palm Springs..."

"I was still on your side," he said, gruffly. "I was trying to keep you on the straight and narrow path. Don't confuse discipline with a lack of affection, Sydney."

It took all my 'discipline' for me not to shout "_Whatever!_" and hang up in a huff. Instead, I said, "I didn't feel like you believed me back then. I never felt like you trusted me or supported me or even... valued me... at all."

"Well, I'm not a touchy-feely kind of person," Dad said. "I didn't mean to make you feel unsupported or anything of that nature. I'm sorry if you felt like that."

That was a crappy apology, but I knew it was probably the best I'd ever get out of him. "Well, thank you, I guess," I said. "Listen, I should go, the girls will be getting home from karate class soon."

"Karate?" my dad said, enthusiasm warming his tone. For all his faults, he had always supported the girls' pursuits, even the unusual ones. "They're _both_ going?"

"Yes," I said, smiling despite the situation. "Violet too."

"Oh, that's great," he said. "I'll want lots of pictures, of course, Sydney."

"Yes, sir," I said.

"And if they have some sort of ceremony, let me know, and I'll fly out to... Wait, where are you living now?"

"Near Pittsburgh," I said, mendaciously.

"Pittsburgh's an ok town," my father said. "Rust Belt, of course, but it's bouncing back."

"Yes, I know," I said.

"Some bad areas, of course, that you'll have to avoid."

"Yes, sir."

"And the girls are ok?" he asked. "Not missing their father too much?"

"I don't think they miss him at all," I said.

"They shouldn't, not after how he treated them," my dad said, probably unaware of the irony of someone like him judging Rick's parenting style. "To think, he sent back Violet's present. Nothing harmful in it. Nothing objectionable."

"He just sent it back because the girls and I don't live there anymore," I said, gently.

"Oh, yes," he said, apparently confused for a moment. "Of course. Anyway, where can I mail the package? I still want Violet to have her birthday present from her Grampa, even if it's late."

Thinking fast, I gave him the address of the garage I'd worked at in North Carolina, explaining that I could pick up the gift when I went back to get more things from Rick's house. As I wasn't planning on ever doing that, I would have to call Mr. O'Connor and ask him to forward the package up to Philadelphia, but I was sure that my kindly ex-boss would be happy to do so.

Dad wrote down the address, grumbling a little about how long it would take Violet to get the present.

"I'm sure she'll be glad to get it, even late," I said, politely.

"Yes, well, I hope by September, you guys will be settled somewhere so I can get Amy's present to her on time," Dad said. "Which reminds me, I expect you to keep me up to date about her interests, Sydney. I want to know what to get her."

"Will do, sir," I said.

"And listen. I want you three to come visit for Thanksgiving this year. You have plenty of time to plan the trip, so don't give me any excuses. I can even pay for the airfare if you can't cover it. There's just no reason for us to have gone so long without a visit."

"You're right, Dad," I said. "I guess we can visit." Adrian gave me a confused look, and I shrugged. What else could I have said?

"Great," Dad said. "Good. I'll write it down in my calender right now. Don't forget, Sydney. I know it's half a year away, but you're an intelligent young woman and shouldn't forget this."

"I won't," I said. "But really, I have to go get the girls from karate now..."

"Of course, of course," he said. "Tell them Grampa says 'hi'."

"I will, Dad," I said, and we said goodbye and hung up.

The minute I disconnected, Adrian threw his arms around me and squeezed me tight. "I am so, so, so proud of you," he said, then peppered my face with kisses. "I know how hard that must have been for you, especially with him being so... just, like, amazingly rude, the entire time. You did great, standing up to him."

"Not so great," I said. Despite everything, Adrian's affectionate caresses were making me smile. "I didn't tell him that I was staying with a male friend, and I didn't say no to visiting at Thanksgiving..."

"Well, what were you supposed to do?" Adrian asked. "I think you did great."

"Thanks," I said, but sighed.

"What's with the sad face?" Adrian asked.

"This just all reminded me that you and I aren't in the clear," I said. "Yeah, we got away from Rick, but I mean, I can't just forget that my father exists..."

"Do you want to?" Adrian asked, looking at me intently. "I mean, do you want to just disappear? We could move somewhere far away. Leave the country."

"I don't really want to run away," I said. "That would mean running away from Carly and Zoe, too."

"Then... do you want to try to face up to him?" Adrian asked.

"Do you have a third option?" I asked, wryly. "Third options are your thing, right?"

"I can't think of anything," Adrian said. "I think third options are generally temporary, anyway. I mean, look at what happened with you and me."

"I know," I said, and buried my face in the folds of his bathrobe.

"We'll figure something out," Adrian said, holding me close. "You're the smartest person I know. If anyone can think of a solution it'll be you."

"Maybe," I said.

"It's cool," Adrian said. "We'll come up with some sort of plan and do something about it. I mean, isn't that what you and I do? We're a team, Sydney. We investigate things and do stuff and... reconnoiter."

"We should reconnoiter later," I said, pulling away from him. "It's almost six o'clock."

"It is?" he said, glancing at my watch. "Well, shit. Good thing one of us is paying attention."

Adrian and I grabbed our clothes from where we'd scattered them, then we both sat down on the futon to get dressed. I didn't exactly relish putting on my dirty work clothes again, but it was all I had with me.

"I hope that we can find a way for you to tell him without him freaking out," Adrian said, cautiously. "I know how much your sisters mean to you."

"Carly will always accept me," I said. "Zoe... I'm not sure. Really, you and the girls are my family now."

"I know what you mean," Adrian said, squeezing my shoulder. "I'm pretty much ok with my mom these days, and it's not like I've _punched_ my father recently, but... I'm so much happier living with you three than I ever was before."

"Me too," I said, then paused with one sock on and the other still in my hand. "Adrian?" I said, looking over at him.

"Hmm?" he said. He was buttoning his shirt, but he stopped to look at me.

There was a big and warm feeling inside of me, so beautiful I felt my eyes fill with tears, and I wasn't sure how to articulate it. "Nothing," I said, shaking my head.

Adrian reached out and took my hand. "Me too," he said.

* * *

"So," I said, closing the book. "Are you ready to go to sleep, honey?"

"I guess," Violet said. "Will Adrian come and kiss me goodnight?"

"Yes," I said. "When he's done with Amy." I was reading with Violet this week, while Adrian was reading with Amy. The plan was for us to switch at the beginning of each week.

"Ok," she said. She giggled. "Does he still have cauliflower in his hair?" As dinner had wound down earlier that night, the girls had begun trying to get Adrian to eat his cauliflower. He'd refused, and they ended up chasing him around the apartment, trying to put the offending vegetable in his mouth. It had degenerated into a tickle fight, and a great deal of cauliflower had ended up mushed into hair, faces, and, unfortunately, the carpet in the living room.

"He had to rinse it out in the shower," I said, reaching down to tickle her a little. "You two got him good."

She giggled again. "Next time he should just eat his cauliflower," she said. "It's easier than fighting all three of us."

"Next time, you can karate kick him into submission," I said.

"I will," she said, nodding. I could tell she was filing away the unfamiliar word _submission_. "I'll kick him into... submission," she repeated.

"Well, good night, then, honey," I said, and leaned forward to give her a kiss on the forehead.

"G'night, Mommy," she said, and got down under her covers.

I began to tuck the blankets in around her, then found myself asking her something that had been on my mind for a few hours. "Violet?" I said. "What made you want to take karate?"

She paused. "I wanted to be ready in case there was another bad guy," she said, after she'd thought about it.

That made a lot of sense. After what had happened to her on that awful night I'd left Rick, it was only natural that she'd want to learn self-defense. It seemed like a healthy way for her to deal – much better than wanting to hide away. "I'm glad you wanted to take the class," I said. "I think it's really great."

"Oh," she said, faintly embarrassed. "Good."

"But I was wondering, why didn't you tell me before that you wanted to take karate?"

"I was afraid," she said.

"Of what, honey?"

"Of the class," she said. "I'm always the shortest. I was afraid the other kids would laugh at me."

"Did they?"

She shook her head.

"Good," I said. "I'm so glad you were so brave, trying something new."

She shrugged. "It's easier to be brave when you _know _that..." She trailed off.

"When you know what?"

"When... when you know that people love you." She looked even more embarrassed.

I thought about my phone conversation with my father that day, and how I'd kept Adrian right by my side. "I know just what you mean," I said.

"Knock knock," Adrian said, sticking his head in the open door. "Can I come in?"

"Of course," I said. "I've been trying to tuck in these blankets, but maybe you can get them a little tighter."

"Move aside, ma'am, I've got this," Adrian said, in his best super-hero voice.

I gave Violet a quick kiss and waved goodnight as I left her room to go say good night to Amy. I found my older daughter propped up in bed reading. She was allowed to read for half an hour after her sister had to go to sleep – a concession to her age.

"Hi, Mom," she said, smiling at me. She smiled so much more often these days than she ever used to, and it was great to see. "How was reading with Violet?"

"Good," I said. "We're reading _The BFG_."

"Oh, that's a good one," Amy said. "I should re-read that sometime."

"What are you reading with Adrian?"

"_The Hobbit_," she said. "Can you believe he's never read it? He's only ever seen the _movies_." She put as much disdain as was possible into the two syllables.

As I sat down on the edge of her bed, I caught sight of the flashlight under her pillow, ready to go for when I called lights out. I thought about taking it away, and then decided to just let her read, if it made her happy. I made a mental note to check on her in an hour or so and make sure she was sleeping by then. "Adrian never was that much into reading," I said. "But maybe we can help him get into it more."

"I _hope_ so," Amy said, then looked down at her hands for a minute. "So, I wanted to tell you... um... Grampa emailed me."

"Really," I said, as calmly as I could. I let Amy have her own email address, as long as I knew the password to it as well. She knew all about online predators, and "stranger-danger," but she had no idea that some of the people who claimed to love her best might be dangerous, too. "What did he say?"

"He just said hi, and that he'd heard I wasn't living with 'my dad' anymore." She used air quotes around the phrase, which, along with an eye-roll, showed how she felt about Rick. "He asked how I liked living with mom's friend, and asked if 'she' was nice." She gave me a _look, _which I ignored.

"Did you write back?" I asked.

"No," she said, slowly. "I thought I'd talk to you first."

"Good idea," I said, and paused to choose my next words carefully. "Listen, honey," I said. "Your grandfather really loves you. I'm sure he does. But... he really doesn't like Moroi at all. He wouldn't like us living with Adrian. That's why I didn't tell him where we are. He might come try to take us away from him, or even try to take you two girls away from _me_."

She nodded to herself. For some reason, this didn't seem to surprise her. "Yeah," she said. "You said you were raised in a household that hates Moroi. So that would mean that Grampa did, too."

"You were really paying attention," I said, smiling. "That's my smart girl."

"He doesn't hate dhampirs, does he?" she asked, looking up at me with hopeful eyes. "He wouldn't hate _me_, would he?"

"I'm sorry, honey," I said. "He doesn't like dhampirs very much..."

"Oh," she said, softly.

"But I really don't know how he'd react to finding out about you," I added. "He might be ok. He might not, though." That was pretty much the truth. He loved Amy so much that I could _almost_ imagine him accepting the fact that she was an "evil creature." He did seem to have softened about some things, lately. But I wasn't betting on a happy resolution of the situation, and I didn't have the heart to lie outright to Amy after all the lying I'd done over the years.

She nodded again, blinking a little to keep her eyes from tearing up. "Well, I won't tell him," she said. "Maybe he won't find out."

"I hope he won't," I said.

"Would he really try to take us away from you?" she asked, in a low voice. "Would he take me away from you and Violet? What if Violet ends up all alone?"

"I won't let that happen," I said. "I won't let anything happen to either of you."

She nodded. "And I won't let anything happen to _you_, either," she said. "I have to protect you two. Once I get big, especially, I'll be really good at it."

I gave her a tight hug. "You're a great kid," I said.

"You're ok, for a mom," she said.

I laughed. "High praise indeed," I said. "But I better say good-night and let you read. Don't stay awake too late." I got up from the bed and began to make my way to the door.

"I won't," she said, and though I knew she was lying, I said good night and left the room, closing the door behind me.

I could hear Adrian and Violet talking still, so I went back out to the kitchen, where I found a complete mess. I had had three "helpers" making dinner with me tonight, and as a result, we'd managed to get nearly every dish in the apartment dirty. We'd more or less cleaned up after the cauliflower fight, but the sink full of dishes had been forgotten in the hullabaloo.

I sighed, then put on my rubber gloves so I could tackle the sink. I was up to my elbows in dishwater when Adrian came down the hallway a few minutes later.

"Hi, sweetheart," he said, as he came up behind me and put his arms around my waist. "Can I help you with this?" he asked, leaning his chin on my shoulder. "Do you want me to take over?"

"Thanks, but I'm ok," I said, turning to kiss his cheek. "I've already got these on." I held up my rubber gloves. "I might as well keep going."

"Those are some seriously sexy rubber gloves, Sage," he said, releasing me and moving to my side. "You should wear those in the bedroom tonight..."

"Shut up," I said, kicking him lightly, as he picked up a dishtowel.

He laughed and began drying one of the pots I'd washed. "We sure made a mess tonight, didn't we?" he commented. "I don't know if the rug in the living room will ever be the same."

"Next time, just eat the cauliflower," I said, smiling.

"Never!" he said. "Death first!"

"It isn't _that_ bad," I said.

"Oh, I disagree," he said, putting the pot away. "It's like someone took everything evil about every vegetable and then combined it in one horrible albino piece of broccoli."

"It isn't evil," I said. "It's a vegetable. There are worse things on earth than cauliflower."

"Hmm," he said, as if thinking. "No, really, there's nothing worse."

"No worse _food_, maybe," I said. "Other things in life are worse."

"Well, fine, if you want to play that," Adrian said. "I guess K-holes are worse."

"What's a K-hole?"

"I'm glad you don't know, my love," Adrian said. "And spirit darkness is worse, too. And... hmmm. Well, I'd rather eat cauliflower than jump out of another burning building. Though it's a close call."

"It was pretty scary," I said, shuddering a little. "There were a few minutes there that I wasn't sure we were going to get out of there."

"Facing the fire was one thing," Adrian said. "Jumping three stories was another. I don't think I could have jumped if it weren't for Violet." He stopped abruptly, then looked over at me. "Don't repeat that to anyone, Sydney," he said, in a low voice.

"Wouldn't dream of it," I said, and put a clean spatula in the drying rack. "How did Violet help you?" I added, casually.

"I guess I just couldn't be scared in front of her, or she'd get scared too," Adrian said. "Plus she just seemed to trust me so much. She was totally convinced that I'd get her out of the building. So I did."

"It's easier to be brave when you know someone loves you," I said, repeating Violet's words.

"Yeah," he said, looking at me in surprise. "Exactly. You hit the nail on the head."

"I was thinking about that today," I said, and then paused because a few strands of my hair had gotten stuck in the corner of my mouth. My gloved hands were covered with soapy dishwater, so I tried to shake my head to the left and right to shake the hair free, but it stayed stubbornly stuck.

Adrian reached over to smooth the hair from my mouth, then resumed drying a saucepan.

I stopped washing the colander in my hands, my eyes drawn to the man by my side. Adrian was heart-stoppingly gorgeous to me, and never more so than in this small, quiet, moment. Something bubbled up inside of me and I spoke before I knew what I was doing.

"I want to marry you," I said.

Adrian dropped the pan and the drying rack shook. He looked at me in surprise. "Are you serious?" he asked, his face even paler than usual.

I was even more shocked than he was, but I couldn't seem to stop the words from spilling from my mouth. "Yes," I said. "I want to marry you. I know we can't, I know that it would alert the alchemists to me and you and it would screw everything up, and I know it's just a piece of paper and it doesn't matter, but I want to anyway. I thought I'd want to be single for a while after my divorce, be independent and stuff like that, but it isn't about that. And I know we can't get married but –"

"Whoa-whoa-whoa-whoa," Adrian said. "Slow down, there. Did you just assume I'll marry you?"

"Well, yes," I said, trying to figure out if he was serious.

"It'd be nice if you _asked_," Adrian said, his eyes twinkling. I put the colander down in the sink and began taking off my gloves. "No," he said, in a sultry voice, putting his hand on my arm. "Leave them _on_."

A smile twisted up one corner of my mouth. "Ok," I said, then took a deep breath. I got down on one knee and took Adrian's hands in my gloved ones. "Adrian Ivashkov," I said, very formally. "Will you marry m–"

"Yes," Adrian said, getting down on his knees to kiss me. He did an extremely thorough job of it, too. When we pulled apart, he was grinning widely. "Of course I want to marry you," he said. "I've wanted to marry you for ten years. The only reason I didn't ask you myself way before this was that I thought you wouldn't want to, because of the whole... thing."

"Same with me," I said, taking off my gloves. "I know it's a dumb thing to do. But I just want to marry you."

"I want that too," Adrian said. "Let's figure out a way, ok?" He kissed my ring finger. "And let's get you a new ring. We should go up to New York City next weekend. I'll buy you the biggest diamond at Tiffany's."

"I don't need a big ring," I said.

"Fine, fine," he said. "No big ring."

"Good."

"I'll get you a tiara instead."

I giggled and kissed him again, then murmured, "I don't want a tiara. I just want you."

"That works out," Adrian said, near my ear. "You have me. Really. For the rest of our lives, Sydney. Piece of paper or no, we'll be married anyway, on the inside." But then he turned his head suddenly, as if he'd heard something. "Amy," he called, not very loudly, but with a surprisingly paternal tone. "Come out here, please."

Amy came around the corner from the hall, where she had apparently been standing long enough to hear us talking. Her eyes were wide with surprise and she was grinning.

"Well, hello, there," Adrian said, as he and I both got to our feet. "Do you need something?"

"I was going to get some water and I heard you and... and... You're getting _married_?"

"I hope so," I said.

"Wow," she said, jumping up and down. "Wow wow wow wow wow!"

"Come here, you sneak," I said, laughing a little, and she ran over to me and threw her arms around both of us.

"Can I tell Vy-Vy?" she asked, still hugging us.

Adrian and I looked at each other. "Your mom and I will talk to her tomorrow," Adrian said. "Is that a deal?"

"Ok," Amy said, letting go of us at last. "Can we be flower girls?" she asked, hopping up and down.

"If possible, yes," I said, cautiously, getting a glass down from the cabinet and filling it with water. "It isn't that simple. But I promise you this: if I ever need flower girls, I will ask you and Violet. I promise."

She gave me a hopeful look as she took the water from me. "Pinky swear?" she asked.

"Ok," I said, and hooked my pinky around hers, which seemed to satisfy her. "Listen," I said, as she drank the water down in one breathless gulp. "We'll talk tomorrow, ok? For now, just go back to bed, sweetheart."

"I'll _never_ sleep," she whined, but hugged us each one more time, said good night, and skipped back to her room.

Adrian and I looked at each other helplessly, then Adrian took my hand and said, "Let's go to bed, too, sweetheart. You have to work in the morning, right?"

"But there are still dishes..." I said, looking over at the sink guiltily.

"I've got nothing to do all day tomorrow," Adrian said. "I'll take care of it. When you come home, the place will be spotless."

I scrutinized his face. "I notice you don't say _you'll_ wash them," I said.

He laughed. "You know me too well, Sage," he said. "Ok, fine, I'm going to get a cleaning service in here to take care of the cauliflower situation in the living room. I'll get someone to finish the dishes, too, while I'm at it." He kissed my cheek. "Come on, let's go to bed."

"I notice you don't say, 'Let's go to _sleep_'," I said.

"Oh, you noticed that, did you?" he said, and shot me a look I felt in the soles of my feet. Then he took my hand and we began walking together, towards our room.

"Let me take a shower," I said. "I still have cauliflower in my hair."

Adrian cast me an appraising look as I opened the door to our room. "Maybe a little, on this side," he said, patting my head. "I don't know, it looks cute. Like, maybe we've stumbled on the latest styling aid."

"Shut up," I said, smiling, and went into our bathroom to take what I hoped would be a quick shower. Of course, it always took a while to wash my thick hair, and though I tried to hurry, the shower still took at least a half an hour, especially since I took a minute or two to shave my legs. When I got out, Adrian was asleep in bed, a copy of _The Hobbit_ open on his chest. I wondered if he was actually enjoying the book, or if he was only reading it to stay in Amy's good graces.

I threw on a nightshirt and climbed into bed next to him. I took the book from his chest and placed it on the nightstand, using a tissue as a bookmark. Then I turned out the light and lay down. But when I did, Adrian woke up, making a _hmmmph_? kind of noise.

"G'night," I said. I cuddled up to him, my front to his back, and gave him a kiss that landed on his jawline, near his ear.

Adrian stretched out luxuriously, letting out a sort of growly yawn. Then he rolled over so that he was facing me, and kissed me softly.

"Was I dreaming, or did we just get engaged, like an hour ago?"

"You weren't dreaming," I said.

"Oh, awesome," he said, and kissed me as his hands began to slide around my waist. "My sexy fiancee," he murmured near my ear. "If we're engaged, we should celebrate..."

Something about that made me feel strange, and I pulled away from him.

"Hey," he said. "What's up?"

"I don't know," I said. "I was just ready to go to sleep, I guess."

"Oh," he said. "Are you sure?" And he kissed me again.

I pulled away again. "Let's just sleep," I said. I couldn't explain it even to myself, but all of a sudden, I almost didn't even want him touching me.

"Hey," he said, concern in his voice. "That's totally fine, Sydney, as long as you're ok. Did I do something wrong?"

"No," I said. "I just... don't want to right now."

"Then we won't," he said, calmly. "That's easy enough."

"Oh," I said. I could hear the surprise in my own voice.

"Did you think I was going to... push you?" Adrian asked, tentatively.

"No," I said, but even as I said it, I realized that I had expected him to do just that. Not because of who he was, but because it was the way it had always been with Rick. I swallowed heavily, then said, "Maybe a little. I mean, just because we're engaged doesn't mean I have to..." I stopped, biting my lip a little.

"Of course not," Adrian said, very gently. "All you need to do is say that you're not into it. I might try to convince you otherwise with my manly wiles, but if they're not working, then I'll just... deal."

"Oh," I said, again.

"I never pushed you, did I?" Adrian said. "I mean, I've been sort of... insistent... about kissing you and stuff in the past, but I never... hurt you, did I?"

"No," I said, emphatically. "No, never."

"Ok, good," Adrian said, with obvious relief. "Let's keep it like that. I don't know how things were with Rick, but with me, you just have to say that you're not in the mood and I'll find something else to do, I promise." He kissed his fingertips, then he pressed his fingers against my cheek.

"Thanks," I said, and it came out in a whisper.

I could almost feel him looking at me in the dark. "What's wrong, Sydney?" he asked.

I shook my head. "Nothing," I said.

"It's something," he said. "But I guess I'll just be patient until you want to tell me." I didn't know what to say to that, so I turned on my side and pulled his arm around me like a blanket. He nudged himself up close to me, and this time, it didn't bother me one bit.

"I love you," I said, after a little while.

"Oh, sweetheart," Adrian said. "I hope you know that I love you too."

"Yes, of course," I said.

"And we'll figure out a way to get married," Adrian said. "We'll... make a plan."

"We'll reconnoiter," I said.

"Yes," he said. "You'll make a plan, and I'll help you with it, and it'll be fine. And you know, once we're married? Same thing as right now, Sydney. You never have to do anything you don't want to do. You don't _have_ to cook. You don't _have_ to clean. You don't _have_ to have sex with me. Nothing at all like that."

I made a non-committal noise, then rolled over again so that I was on my back. I could see his face a little, since the blinds were open and some of the city light was coming in through the windows. "I'm sorry I'm so weird tonight," I said.

"A guy like me doesn't judge weirdness in other people," Adrian said, and kissed me very lightly on the cheek. I turned so that his next kiss landed on my lips. He smiled, and ran his fingers over my face. "You're so beautiful," he said. "I wish you could see how you look in this light. You look like an angel or something."

I never knew how to react to Adrian's compliments, but I tried my best. "Maybe you can sketch me in the dark sometime," I said.

"Maybe," he said. "I wonder if I could capture it."

"The next big thing," I said. "Paintings for Moroi, by Moroi, that to human eyes, just look like a black splotch on the canvas."

He laughed with genuine good humor. "It could be huge," he said. "But since it's your idea, I'll have to give you half the proceeds..."

"You better," I said, grinning. "I'll sic Zmey on you if you don't!"

"I would share with you anyway," he said, the smile becoming much more tender. "I want to make your life easy and happy and... perfect. I want to... help you."

"I know that," I said.

"You can have as much as you want of my money, you know," he added. "I've been meaning to get you a credit card, and we can get one of those joint bank accounts..."

"I have money of my own," I said.

"I know that," he said. "But... I mean... I have plenty. So use it, if you want to. Isn't there anything you need? Clothes, books, a new car maybe?"

"I just need you," I said, and kissed him. What had started as a quick, almost joking kiss, quickly became a lot more than that, and I didn't want to pull away from him at all this time. Maybe it was knowing that I _could,_ if I wanted to, that made me feel like... well, like I _didn't_ want to.

"You need me?" he whispered.

"So much," I whispered, as my hands began to roam over his body. The weird coldness and fear that had seized me a few minutes ago had melted away completely.

"I've been reading more lately," Adrian said. "Does that impress you?"

"Totally," I said.

"Good, because that's why I'm doing it,"Adrian said. "So I read an article online, this science magazine..."

"Oh?" I said, kissing his neck.

"It said that women hit their sexual peak at 30."

"I've heard that, yeah," I said.

"And you're 30 now," he breathed.

I confirmed that with a nod and a soft bite on his collarbone.

"I can help you with that, too," he said. "If, um, you want me to..."

"I do," I said.


	24. Dear Adri-ddy

_Quick but important AN:** I decided to rename Alex and Mason** (Rose and Dimitri's kids) **Cole and Zach, respectively**, because another FF author is using those two names (Alex and Mason) for Rose's kids. So in my story, Cole is the older one, and Zach is a little younger._

_Secondly, sorry that this chapter is kind of short... It's mainly a ramp-up to the next chapter, but a few minor plot points are revealed. _

**Chapter 24: Dear Adri-ddy**

The squawk of the fire alarm filled the apartment, and Adrian came running from the bedroom, wearing only his polka-dotted boxer shorts and thin white t-shirt, his face creased with concern. The minute he saw what was going on in the kitchen, though, his expression changed from anxiety to amusement.

It was a pretty funny scene. The girls and I had been awake for hours, and we'd been busy. There were crepe paper streamers and balloons everywhere, and the girls had made a sign that said "Happy Birthday Adrian" in sparkly puffy paint. Now I was standing on a chair holding a cake up by the fire alarm, so that the smoke from the birthday candles would set off the alarm. I handed the cake down to Amy and reached up to pull the batteries out of the device. Immediately, the awful noise stopped and I stepped down. Then the girls and I began to sing a cheerful – if not entirely tuneful – rendition of "Happy Birthday to You." On the third line, I said "dear Adrian," Violet said "dear Daddy," and Amy, apparently changing her mind midway, said "dear Adri-ddy."

Adrian laughed and sat down at the table, which was already set with bacon, scrambled eggs, coffee, cocoa, and juice. Amy put his cake down in front of him just as the girls and I finished singing. The "cake" was really a stack of chocolate chip- pancakes, with two candles, each shaped like the number 3, stuck into it. I'd even written Adrian's name in syrup.

"You girls are too much," Adrian said, grinning from ear to ear, and blew out the candles. Then he took a picture of the "cake" with his phone, and once the image was preserved for all time in digital form, he began slicing the stack of pancakes into pieces to serve to each of us. "I can't believe you guys did all this," he added, looking around at the room.

"It was no trouble," I said, sitting down at the head of the table, opposite from Adrian. "We had fun."

"Yes," Violet said, in her grave voice, as she sat down in her usual spot on one side of the table, opposite from Amy. "It was for _you_. Do you like it?"

"I love it," Adrian said. "It's perfect. Best birthday ever."

"What did you wish for, when you blew out the candles?" Amy asked.

"If he tells us, it won't come true," Violet said, horrified.

"Miss Purple is right,"Adrian said. "Birthday wishes are no joke. My wish from last year totally came true."

"What did you wish for last year?" Amy asked.

"I guess you could say that I wished for you guys," Adrian said. He looked over at me, and we exchanged a tender look.

"You didn't even know us then," Amy said.

"He knew Mommy," Violet said, dreamily. "He _loves_ Mommy."

"You're right, Miss Purple," Adrian said. "I do. That's why I'm going to marry her." I saw him look over at the engagement ring I was wearing now. We'd agreed on a small, but very beautiful, diamond, set with a few small, bright purple amethysts. At my suggestion, Adrian had given a donation to a women's charity equal to the amount that he'd wanted to spend on an enormous ring.

"Ewww," Amy said, as Adrian and I gazed at each other again for a moment. "Don't be mushy, you guys."

"I love you two, too," Adrian said, reaching over to poke Amy in the arm. "And I'll be mushy if I want to. It's my birthday." Then he sprayed some whipped cream on first Amy's, then Violet's pancakes, making the cream into the shape of a heart.

"The whipped cream is supposed to be for the cocoa," I pointed out.

Adrian sprayed some of the whipped cream directly into his mouth, then said, with his mouth full, "It's my birthday! I'll do whatever I want."

"Fine," I said. "Just don't..."

He got up, whipped cream can in his hand. "Don't do what?" he said, a dangerous grin on his face.

"Don't make a mess," I said, hopelessly, as he came over to my side of the table. He casually sprayed some whipped cream on my arm, then lifted my arm to his lips and licked it off of me.

"Ewww," said Amy and Violet in unison.

Adrian grinned at all of us as he returned to his seat. As I wiped my arm off with a napkin, he sprayed whipped cream on his pancakes and began eating with gusto.

"So," I asked, as he shoveled pancakes into his mouth happily, "what do you want to do on your birthday?"

He thought about it as he chewed, then asked, "What time is the party starting, seven?" I confirmed that, and he nodded. "Well, we can play a little Mario, and then have lunch, then take a nap."

"A nap?" the girls said, in a disgusted unison.

"I'm almost ten," Amy said.

"I'm almost eight," Violet said. This was really stretching it, of course, since she had turned seven only a month or two ago, but I let it slide.

"The party is going to go until at least midnight," I said. "I think Adrian's right, and we should _all_ take a nap before-hand."

"Midnight?" Violet murmured, at the same time as Amy said "Cool!"

"Yes," I said. "A lot of our guests... keep unusual schedules. So, they can't really come during the day. That's why the party is starting at sunset."

"Are there going to be... Moroi?" Violet whispered. "Lots of them?"

"Well, my good friend, Lissa, is coming, with her family," Adrian said. "They're all Moroi."

"Wait," Amy said. "Isn't the queen named Lissa?"

"Yes," Adrian said. "That's who I'm talking about. The queen."

"The queen is coming?" Violet squeaked. "Do we have to learn how to curtsy?"

"No," I said, laughing. "She's actually very nice." I hadn't seen Lissa at all for many years, and I was a little nervous about her coming to the party. But she was a good friend of Adrian's, and it made sense for her and Christian to come. I also thought it would be good for the girls to meet young Moroi, so that they could begin to get used to them. Now that Adrian was a permanent part of our lives, so were Moroi, and it would be good for the girls – especially Violet – to begin to adjust.

"Lissa is a really nice person," Adrian said, taking Violet's hand. "And she's Rose's best friend. You remember Rose, right?"

Violet nodded. "Rose is Zach's mother, right?" she asked, stars in her eyes as she remembered her crush.

"She is," I said. "And Zach and Cole are coming, along with Lissa, her husband, and their three kids. Lissa's three children are Moroi, Violet, but I'm sure that they're nice." As a matter of fact, I _wasn't_ sure of that, but Rose had promised me that Lissa's kids were pretty well behaved, and I had to hope that Rose's judgment was accurate.

"Also, our friend Jail – I mean, Jill is coming by," Adrian said.

"Really?" I said, surprised by that information as Violet had been about meeting a queen. "Jill? I thought she'd be on a photo-shoot or something."

"She wouldn't miss my birthday," Adrian said.

"Who's Jill?" Amy asked, interested.

"You haven't met her yet," I said. "I used to share a room with her when we went to the same boarding school. I haven't seen her in ages."

"You went to boarding school?" Amy asked, surprised. "I didn't know that."

"For a little while," I said. "It's complicated. But that's how I met Adrian. Actually, that's how I met a lot of people – Eddie, Jill, Angeline..."

"Angeline is off on assignment somewhere," Adrian said. "Or she'd probably come, too."

"Is Eddie coming?" Amy asked. She had gotten along really well with him at Rose's barbecue.

"Yes," I said, and Adrian and I exchanged looks. Having Jill and Eddie in the same room was potentially a little dangerous, but they were both our friends, so we had to take the risk. "So," I said, thinking about it. "We're going to have some Moroi and some dhampirs. Also, some of Adrian's friends from the building are coming, so we'll have a few human guests, too. It'll be a nice mix."

"It's going to be completely off the hook," Adrian said.

Amy rolled her eyes. "No one says that anymore, Dad," she said. "That's like, so from the 'teens. Or even the zeros."

"I say it," Adrian said, not reacting to the fact that Amy had called him 'Dad.' "And if I say it, then it's still cool, because I'm the coolest guy ever."

"I guess," Amy said, smiling.

"I _know_, and it's my birthday," Adrian said. "And I'm running the shots."

"And as far as running the shots goes, you want to do what again, with the afternoon?" I asked. "Play some kind of video game?"

"'Some kind of video game', she says," Adrian repeated, scoffing. "This is _Mario Holo-Drive, _for god's sake, woman!"

"You have _Mario Holo-Drive_?" Amy said, eyes wide.

"No one has that yet," Violet whispered.

"My mom sent it to me for my birthday," Adrian said, a strange look crossing his face. "She's in Venice right now with her boyfriend. So uh, she couldn't come to the party. But she sent the present."

"And your dad?" I asked, gently.

"He's not invited anyway," Adrian said. There was a short silence at the table, and then Adrian said, with a slightly brittle smile, "But that leaves more Wii for us."

Amy put her hand out and patted Adrian's shoulder. "Sorry," she said. "I promise I'll always come to your birthday parties."

"Me too," Violet said. "I promise."

I looked at Adrian, not sure how, exactly, to say what I wanted to say. I think he knew what I meant anyway.

* * *

After we'd finished breakfast and put the dishes away, we all got dressed – Violet chose a new purple dress in honor of the special occasion, and Amy chose a sweater covered in sparkles for the same reason – and then we gathered in the living room to give Adrian his presents. The girls had gotten him a comic-book version of the _Lord of the Rings_, which made him laugh. I gave him a new sweater and some of his favorite cologne, and winked to let him know that there was another present waiting for him for later.

After that, we decided to play Adrian's new game. It was a lot more fun than I had expected it would be, and we ended up playing for several hours. When we'd had enough of driving through crazy holographic landscapes, we had a late lunch, which was nearly as silly as breakfast had been. Then I told the girls that it was time for their nap, and reminded them that the nap was a necessary precondition of them being allowed to stay up until midnight. While Adrian jumped into the shower, I got the girls into bed, sitting with each one for a few minutes, tucking them each in, and closing the curtains.

When I went back to the master suite, I found the bathroom door open, and I peeked in. Adrian stood in front of the mirror, a towel wrapped around his waist. He was applying shaving cream to his jawline and chin. The room was steamy from his shower, and the mirror was covered with a fine mist, except for one spot that he'd wiped clean.

"Oh," I said, not sure where I wanted to look first – his back, his shoulders, his slim hips... . I forced myself to make eye contact with him in the mirror. "Sorry to interrupt," I said.

"No problem," he said, smiling at me in the misty mirror. "Need the bathroom?"

"Oh, no," I said. "I just wanted to chat."

"What's up?" he asked.

As he reached over to wipe the mirror off – it had already begun to fog up again – I jumped up a little to sit on the edge of the sink, which was built into a sturdy cabinet. "I just wanted to give you some good news," I said. "A little birthday surprise."

He smiled, then picked up his razor. "Do tell," he said, as he began to shave.

"Ok, well, I had an idea for how you and I could get married, legally," I said. Ever since I had inadvertently proposed to Adrian two weeks ago, we had been trying to figure out a way for us to get married without alerting the alchemists to our presence.

"Really?" he said, glancing over at me, then squinted at the mirror. The mist had already begun to cover the surface of the glass again.

"Here," I said, reaching over to take the razor from his hands. "Give me that."

"Um, Sydney, you do know that that's a very sharp implement you're holding there," he said.

"Oddly enough, I'm familiar with razors," I said. I was wearing a pair of running shorts, and I hooked my bare legs around his so he could feel how smooth mine were. "Don't you trust me?" I added, holding up the razor and batting my eyelashes.

"Evil question," he said. "Fine. But if I die of bloodloss, you should know that I haven't had a chance to update my will yet."

"I'll try not to let you die," I said. Then I put my free hand behind his head to hold him steady, and began sliding the razor over his cheek, near his jawline, feeling the slight resistance of the stubble against the blade.

"Very kind," he said, and then waited as I continued to move the razor over his face. "Hmm," he said after a moment."You _do_ know how to do this."

"I know how to do everything," I said, smiling a little. "So, anyway, do you want to hear my news?

"Absolutely," Adrian said. His eyes closed halfway as he began to relax.

"The way it works is, whenever there's a significant event in the Moroi world – a birth, death, marriage, divorce, or geographical move – the alchemist system picks up on it. Our system is automated, but a trained alchemist always reviews the queue to decide how to file the information, and to determine if any follow up is necessary." I leaned back to rinse the razor off in the sink, then turned back to my task. "So, if you and I file a marriage license, it will show up in the queue, and someone will definitely take note of the fact that you're marrying _me_."

"So you're going to hack into the system?" Adrian asked. He moved closer to me, almost leaning against me, and I tightened my legs around his.

"Not me," I said. "Carly."

"Your sister, right?"

"Right," I said. "Zoe's living with Dad at the moment, and apparently she just leaves her laptop around the house. Carly lives nearby, and she's seen the computer tons of times. I talked to her yesterday, actually, and, um... I told her."

"About us?" Adrian said, surprised.

I leaned behind me to rinse the razor off again, then nudged Adrian to lift his head up a little so that I could get the small hairs on the underside of his neck. He leaned his head against my steadying hand. "She already knew a little bit about you," I said. "She's the only one I ever told anything about it."

"You two are pretty close," Adrian observed.

"I was the only one who she told what Keith did," I said. "And she's the only one I told how much I cared about you." I hadn't told her everything, of course. At the time, I had been deluding myself, too, and when I had explained things to Carly, I had made myself sound more like a victim of hormones than a woman in love. But still, it had been a blessed release to talk about Adrian, and how much I missed him.

"Did you tell her about Amy?" Adrian asked. "I mean, then, not now."

"No," I said. "I just couldn't. Not now, not before. But... . Even before, she knew other things. Things about Rick. I think she hated him more than _I_ did."

"And now?"

"Well, I told her about you coming back into my life. Not the whole truth, but just how wonderful you've been to all of us, and how happy you've made all of us. She doesn't love the idea of you and me getting married, but she is so glad I left Rick, and so happy that I'm happy, that she's agreed to help." Carly's exact words had been, "Well, a Moroi will only suck your blood. Rick sucked out your soul. All in all, I think you're better off with the Moroi." This had been a fairly accurate statement, and I loved her all the more for it.

"What is she going to do, exactly?" Adrian asked.

"She's going to intercept the alert in the queue," I said, as I carefully moved the razor over a few spots I'd missed along his jawline, my other hand on the back of his neck. "They check it on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so if we file on a Monday, she can check frequently on Monday to delete the alert before anyone else sees it."

"Is there a chance someone could see it before she does?"

"Yes," I said. "There's always the chance." I rinsed the razor again, then turned my attention to Adrian's upper lip.

"Hmm," Adrian said, not wanting to move his mouth.

"But... I think it would work," I said. "And if something went wrong, well, we'd deal with it. At least we would know that they knew and could do something about it."

"So you want to try?" Adrian asked, fixing his eyes on me.

"I do," I said, and he smiled. "Turn to the side a little," I added, getting another spot I'd missed.

"When do you want to do it?" he asked.

"Maybe in a month or two," I said. "Soon, anyway. Maybe June. That's the classic time to get married, right?"

"Really?" he said, holding as still as he could. "That soon? That's great, Sydney."

"Is June good for you?" I asked.

"You sound like you're scheduling a doctor's appointment," Adrian said, smiling a little despite his attempt to keep his face still.

I shrugged a little. "The wedding won't change much for me," I said. "I don't care about the dress or the flowers. I just want to know that we're really married. I just want..." I paused, then put the razor down for a moment to look Adrian in the eye. "I just want our child to be born to a married couple this time."

"Our child?" he repeated, clearly surprised. "You're not already..."

"Oh, no," I said, running my hand over the now-smooth skin of his face, checking for any spots I'd missed. There were none. "Sorry, didn't mean to imply that. No, not yet. But um, I've been thinking that we... could start trying."

"Really?" Adrian said, smiling. "Oh, wow. This is so cool."

"So, you're still up for it?" I asked.

"Sydney," he said, a twinkle in his eyes. "I'm _so_ up for it." He took my free hand and placed it somewhere south of his waist.

"Oh," I said. "I see. Or rather, I feel."

Adrian quickly ran his hands over his face, clearly satisfied with the job I'd done. Then he put his hands under my butt and lifted me up off the sink. I still had my legs wrapped around his, so I moved them upwards to grip his waist, and slid my arms around his neck to hold on to him as he began carrying me out of the bathroom and towards the bed.

"You still have some shaving cream on your cheek," I said, giggling.

"Do I?" he asked, unconcerned, as he walked backwards towards the bed.

"A little," I said.

We reached the bed and he sat down on it heavily, and we both fell over. He rolled over on top of me, then he rubbed his face against my shirt, reminding me a little of an affectionate cat. "Did I get it all?" he asked, grinning. Somewhere in all of this, his towel had fallen off, and now he lay on top of me completely naked.

"I think so," I said, in a whisper, and our lips met.

His hands, familiar now but still exciting, began traveling over my body, helping me out of my clothes.

"The girls?" he asked, as my t-shirt hit the ground.

"In their beds, resting," I said.

"Good," he said, but just in case, he got out of bed quickly to lock the door. When he came back to the bed, he jumped on top of me, pinning me down to the mattress, his mouth going to my lips, my cheeks, my neck. "Is this ok?" he murmured, between kisses. He'd been asking me that a lot lately, whenever we'd made love, ever since my little freak out two weeks ago.

"It's good," I said. "It's um, better than good..."

He let out a happy sigh as I wrapped my legs around his waist. He leaned forward to kiss me again and then stopped with a thoughtful look on his face. "I was just thinking that I should make sure we had a condom handy, and then realized that we don't need one."

"No," I said, smiling and brushing back his hair.

"I can't believe we're going to... I mean, I never did this _trying_ to cause a pregnancy, you know?"

"Me either," I said, and then I felt the smile fade from my face.

"What is it?" Adrian asked, noticing my change in mood. "Are you ok, sweetheart?"

I didn't want my memories to intrude on this moment. It would be like letting Rick win all over again. "I'm ok when I'm with you," I whispered, trying to bring myself back to the present. "And I'm with you right now."

"If you're sure," he said, smiling tentatively.

"I'm sure," I said. "Hope you don't mind if this one turns out to be a girl, too."

Adrian grinned. "Well, I already have two daughters – why not one more?"

_I have two daughters._ Even now, in this unguarded moment, that's how he thought of himself – as a man with two daughters. No matter what difficulties our relationship caused, I had hit the jackpot when I had fallen in love with Adrian. I rolled over on top of him, as love and lightness – and desire – filled me. He grinned as I pinned _his_ wrists down to the bed and leaned down to kiss him.

"It's your birthday," I said, in a low voice, near his ear. "_I_ should be doing the work."

"Happy birthday to _me_," he said, delighted.

_A/N: I know this isn't really a complete chapter. I had meant for this chapter to be the entire birthday – including the party – but it just was taking me forever to write the party scene, with all the different characters interacting! And I didn't want you guys to have to wait so long for an update. Anyway, I'm working on the party scene as we speak, and it's shaping up pretty cute. _

_This chapter originally began with a 2-3 page bit about Sydney and the girls waking up to set up the house for the surprise. I thought it was cute and sweet, but ultimately a little plotless, and I decided to take it out. In case you like reading outtakes, I posted the scene on tumblr. If you want to know my tumblr, pm me and I'll tell you. :) If you already know it, just look in my archive for stuff tagged "endgame outtakes". I might end up putting more of them up, along with other outtakes from DITT and stuff. It's not necessarily fascinating stuff, but you might think some of it is cute... you know, like deleted scenes in a DVD._


	25. The Party (part 1)

_Hey guys. So this chapter has nearly been my undoing. It's been so hard to write a scene with SO MANY CHARACTERS in it. But I really wanted to check in with everyone and see how they're all doing... Christian, Lissa, their kids, Jill, Eddie, their drama, Rose, Dimitri, and their kids, plus Adrian's other friends (he does have other friends, I mean, he's a friendly guy) and all the drama that goes on when there's a bunch of people all together. _

_But the scene has been hard to write so I kept taking time off to write other chapters instead. That's the good news, I guess – now I have a lot more developed as to what's going to happen next, and there's a bit more action to come (which sort of surprised me, but I realized that some things weren't quite wrapped up to my satisfaction, Rick-wise). _

_Anyway, this chapter turned out so long that I finally just decided to cut it in half and post this much of it so far. I have no idea when I'll get the other half up. Maybe tomorrow, maybe next week, sigh!_

_Thanks for your patience. _

**Chapter 25: The Party (part 1)**

Looking back on it later, I was surprised that Adrian's party went as well as it did, since the entire time, I had the feeling that we were inches away from disaster. Yet somehow, we managed to get through the entire night with only a few small scratches and bruises.

The guests started arriving at around 7, about a half an hour before sunset. The first few people to ring our bell were some of our neighbors from the building – human guests who didn't have a problem with socializing during daylight hours. Several of Adrian's drinking buddies showed up with six-packs of Yuengling beer and good-wishes for all. Amy's friend Ronnie came with her mother and father, and we were all surprised when Ronnie threw her arms around Adrian and loudly wished him a happy birthday, then shyly presented him with a hand-made birthday card. Adrian thanked the little girl sincerely for the card, which she told us had taken her nearly an hour to make. Then he stuck it on the fridge with a magnet, giving it the place of honor. When the girls went off to play in Amy's room, Adrian offered Ronnie's mother and father a drink, and I smiled as I caught Tina, Ronnie's mother, surreptitiously checking out Adrian's butt when he bent to get a beer from the bottom shelf of the fridge. Adrian really had an effect on girls and women of all ages.

I was explaining our "preemptive nap" theory to Tina when the doorbell rang again. Adrian opened the door to find Rose and Dimitri, accompanied by their two sons.

"Where's Amy?" Cole asked, grinning, and Adrian told him to go down the hall to the girls' room so that they could all play. As Cole and Zach ran down the hall to find their new friends, I said a little prayer that the boys wouldn't say anything strange to Ronnie, who knew nothing about the world of dhampirs and Moroi. Rose quietly assured me that she had warned them about interacting with humans, but that didn't quite put my fears to rest.

Then Adrian and I were faced with the task of introducing Rose and Dimitri to our human guests, and nearly everyone reacted with surprise as they took in Dimitri's imposing height and presence. I found my hand going to the cross I wore around my neck – an old nervous gesture. Would someone wonder if there was something... unusual... about Dimitri? But my fears turned out to be unfounded. His pleasant manners, coupled with Rose's charm and friendly demeanor, put everyone at ease. Soon we were all chatting while we ate some snacks and had a few drinks.

The drinks were another source of concern for me, since I knew that alcohol hadn't always been good for Adrian, but I noticed that he was sticking to light beer, and clearly pacing himself. It was a far cry from his old hard-drinking ways, and I smiled when I saw him letting his beer go flat as he paid more attention to conversation than he did to his beer. I myself stuck with diet Coke, just in case my afternoon "activities" with Adrian had had their intended affect.

Eddie arrived a short while after Rose did, bringing another problem with him: a date. She was a dhampir named Elise, and she was pretty and very friendly looking, with curly brown hair that she had cut short to show off an impressive array of molnija marks. I didn't want to be rude to Elise by grilling Eddie in front of her, but as soon as I had a chance, I pulled Eddie aside under the pretense of getting him a drink so that I could find out what was going on.

"Elise seems nice," I said, as I dug through the fridge for a bottle of Corona.

"She _is_ nice," he said. "She's also calm, mature, and confident."

I wondered if that was a dig at Jill, who had sometimes had trouble controlling her emotions over the years. "Have you known her long?" I asked, handing over the bottle.

"We've only been out a few times," Eddie said.

"And you brought her to this party because...?"

"Because I like her." He met my eye with a touch of defiance.

I sighed. "But Jill is coming," I said.

"Jill will be fine," Eddie said, wryly. He grabbed a lime from the fruit bowl on the counter and began slicing it into sections on the cutting board I had set out for cheese and crackers. "She's seeing someone, and I'm pretty sure she'll be bringing him."

"She has a boyfriend?" I exclaimed, as I watched lime juice spraying all over my nice clean cutting board.

"Scott Zeklos," Eddie said. The look on his face was similar to the look someone got when saying the name "Adolph Hitler."

"Ah," I said. "A royal."

"A royal with enough Dragomir blood in his line to 'count,'" Eddie said, putting a quarter of lime into his beer. "If Jill marries him, she can make more little Dragomirs for the family line." Lissa and Christian had agreed to give their children the last name Dragomir, rather than Ozera, and Adrian had told me that it was hoped by many that Jill would do the same, if and when she had children with an "appropriate" mate. The whole thing was kind of gross to me, and reminded me of the inbreeding that had left the entire Russian royal family with severe cases of hemophilia.

"I never thought that Jill really cared about that sort of thing," I said. I grabbed a paper towel to dab up the lime juice from the cutting board before it got on any of the cheese.

Eddie gave me another humorless smile. "She knows her duty," he said. "She's learned it over the last ten years."

"Well, if anyone knows duty, it's you," I said tartly. "So cut her some slack, ok? And try not to make a scene at my party. I want this to go smoothly for Adrian."

"Don't worry," Eddie said. "I'll just stay away from her. That's better than fighting anyway."

"Thanks," I said, then sighed. "What happened, anyway? I thought that you two were starting to talk it out."

Eddie shrugged. "When I got back from North Carolina, I was really going to try again, you know? Watching you and Adrian together made me think that maybe... maybe love really _can_ win out. Or something." He took a long sip of his beer. "But she was already dating that douchebag. So what could I do?"

"You could try telling her how you feel," I suggested, mildly.

"She already knows how I feel," Eddie said. "She's decided that other things are more important. And I wish her the best, Sydney, I really do."

"I'm sure you do," I said.

"And you, too," Eddie said, with the air of someone changing the subject. "Did I hear right? Are you and Adrian really engaged?"

Sheepishly, I lifted up my hand so Eddie could look at the ring.

"Ooh, are we ring-gazing?" Rose said, coming over to join us. "Let me see the _precious_!"

I laughed and let her see, too, and I ended up telling them the story of ring-shopping with Adrian, and how hard it had been to convince him that I really wanted just a _small_ stone. Soon we were all drifting back out to the living room area to join the rest of the crowd.

By now, someone had put on some music, and people were mingling and talking happily. I made the rounds to make sure that everyone had enough to drink and that the snacks were circulating, and once I was done with that task, I paused uncertainly, looking around the room. Dimitri was talking about old western movies with one of Adrian's buddies, and Rose and Tina were talking about Tina's recent trip to Russia. Adrian was laughing with Eddie and Elise, and from the looks of things, he was having a great time. I felt a little out of place. I knew everyone, of course, but I didn't know who I wanted to talk to, or what I wanted to talk about. On top of all of that, I had a nagging worry about the girls, including little Ronnie. What if the girls weren't getting along with Cole and Zach?

I finally decided to sneak away to peek into Amy's room. As soon as I saw the kids, though, my fears were put to rest. The five of them were in the middle of what looked like a pretty fun game of "pretend." As far as I could tell, the pillow pit had become a fort, or possibly a boat, and there were sheets and blankets stretched over other furniture to create tunnels or obstacles of some kind. It made sense to the kids, anyway, and their laughter was audible even down the hall as I rejoined the grownups in the living room.

"Hey, Sydney!" Elise said, as I walked by. "Come over and talk to us about the wedding!"

I put on a smile and joined the group consisting of Elise, Tina, and Rose. "Adrian and I don't have any plans yet," I said. "Do you guys have any ideas or advice?"

Naturally, they all did. Tina told us about her own wedding, and Elise described one that she'd been to recently. Then Rose launched into a description of her wedding to Dimitri. It had apparently taken place in Baia, the town in Siberia where Dimitri was from, and had been attended by pretty much the entire town. Rose rolled her eyes as she told us how Dimitri's grandmother had ranted loudly during the entire ceremony, but after Rose and Dimitri had taken their vows, the old woman suddenly ran over and welcomed her to the family. And then, Rose said, she and Dimitri had gone on a road trip in the United States for their honeymoon. "We went to see the Corn Palace," Rose said, sheepishly. "And a few other places like that. It was sort of a... personal joke. Places you're supposed to see before you die, that kind of thing. Um. It's hard to explain." She began playing with her hair a little absentmindedly, a happy smile on her face, and Elise bravely took over the conversation by talking about a road trip she'd gone on when she was eighteen.

So, after that, even I started to relax and join in the various conversations. But once the sun went down, a new problem sprang up for me. One of Adrian's Moroi friends arrived, and Tina watched him walking around the room with curiosity. "Is that a relative of Adrian's?" she asked.

"No," I said. "Just a friend, I think."

"He looks a lot like him," she said, obviously curious. "He's so thin and pale. It's like he's a vampire or something."

I laughed and changed the subject, but I began to grow uneasy. More Moroi were supposed to arrive any minute now, and it occurred to me that some of our human guests might get kind of curious about why so many of Adrian's friends were so unusual looking. And when Adrian put his arm around me and excitedly mentioned that Lissa was going to make it after all – bringing Christian and her three children with her – I knew we'd be in trouble. What if the children were too young to have learned how to hide their fangs? If they went to play with the other kids, Ronnie might notice that something strange was going on.

But thankfully, just before 8 o'clock, Tina said that she had to take Ronnie home, since it was a school night. The rest of the children walked Ronnie to the door to say goodbye, and the poor girl seemed sad to be leaving the party before so many of the other guests. Adrian gave her a hug and thanked her again for the card, and she grinned dizzily at all of us before her mother and father practically dragged her out of the door.

Shortly after Ronnie's family left, Lissa and Christian arrived with their three children and their three black-suited dhampir Guardians, who took up observational stances around the room. I looked around surreptitiously, outwardly calm but secretly watchful and nervous. Wouldn't someone notice the arrival of these unusual looking people and their strange bodyguards? But thankfully, the only humans left at the party by then were Adrian's easy-going drinking buddies. And to judge by their general demeanor, they were more interested in how pretty Lissa was than in how long her children's teeth were.

As Lissa and Christian said hello to all of us, I was grateful to the years of alchemist training that allowed me to hide my discomposure. The queen was even more beautiful than I'd remembered her, and Christian Ozera was the second-most handsome man I'd ever seen in my life – after Adrian, of course. But the pair was pleasant and gracious and Lissa was obviously so happy to see Adrian that I found myself relaxing a little again. Anyone who loved Adrian even half as much as I did had to be ok, right? When Adrian took Christian into the kitchen to get him a beer and some snacks, I was left to chat with Lissa.

"Sorry that we're kind of out of it," Lissa said, as she settled on the couch with her children. "The kids just woke up. But this is Margot. Say hi to Sydney, Margot." Margot, a smaller, female version of Christian with a thick tangle of dark hair and bright blue eyes, nodded sleepily and greeted me obediently. "And this is Andre." A four-year-old boy with light brown hair and sea-green eyes was clinging to her leg, and when he heard his name, he hid his face in the folds of her skirt. "And this is Freddy," Lissa concluded, smiling down at the sleeping baby in her lap.

"It's nice to meet you," I said to the children, smiling as brightly as I could. It was unnerving to see a baby Moroi. His skin was so pale, and when he yawned, I could see that he already had his fangs. I found myself wondering if Moroi mothers breastfed, and if they did, whether they produced milk or blood. Then I pushed the idea out of my head, not wanting to know the answer. Just at that moment, Adrian rejoined us, putting his arm around me in an almost protective gesture. I glanced over at the kitchen area to see Christian chatting with Eddie and Elise.

"Hi, Margot!" he said. "Hi, Andre!"

"Hi, Uncle Adrian," the children said, in near unison.

"You know, " Adrian said, leaning towards Margot. "My daughter, Amy, is nine. That's about your age, right?"

Margot nodded again. "I'm eight and three quarters," she said. She was already taller than Amy by an inch, with delicate features and a clear little voice.

"Well, do you want me to introduce you to her?" Adrian offered.

"I can go by myself," Margot said, then turned her head to the side and studied him for a minute. "I didn't know you had a daughter, Uncle Adrian."

"Well, I do," Adrian said, smiling. "Two of them, actually. And _you_, little man," he added to Andre. "I know the other kids are a little older than you, but they're all nice and I'm sure they'd like to play with you."

Andre smiled and hid his face in his mother's skirt again.

"Your cousins are here, too," Lissa put in, stroking the little boy's hair. "You always get along with them."

"Cole and Zach?" Margot said, perking up a little.

One piece of the puzzle fell into place in my mind as I realized that Lissa's children had been told to think of Rose's children as their "cousins." I wondered if they knew that they were actually half-siblings. It seemed like the kind of thing that would be very difficult to explain to children. Heck, it was probably difficult to explain to adults.

"Do you want me to show you to Amy's room?" I offered, looking down at the two children. "That's where Cole and Zach are."

Margot eyed me with interest. "You're a human, aren't you?" she said. She stated it as a fact, but there was a slight tinge of disapproval in her little voice.

"Shhhh," Lissa said looking around, hoping that none of the human guests had overheard. "Public manners, Margot."

"I am human, yes," I said, softly. "And so is my daughter Violet. But my other daughter, Amy, is a dhampir. They're playing with Cole and Zach in that room down there." I pointed down the hallway.

Margot stood up, taking her little brother by the hand. "Come on, Andre, let's go play," she said.

"What if the human girl doesn't like us?" Andre asked, gripping the edge of the couch.

"Violet's not afraid of Moroi," Adrian said. "She lives with me, right?"

"It'll be ok, Andre," Margot said. "Bye, Mom and Dad. Bye, Uncle Adrian and um, Aunt Sydney." Then she pulled Andre's hand again, and he stood up. We all waved goodbye as the two children went down the hall to Amy's room.

"I don't know if I'll ever get used to you saying 'my daughter,'" Lissa said, shaking her head, as soon as the children were out of earshot.

"That's ok," Adrian said, sitting down on the couch with her, and pulling me down with him. I landed in his lap, and he leaned his chin on my shoulder. "I'm still not used to calling you Queen."

Lissa smiled, and started to respond before her she noticed my engagement ring. "Looks like I'm going to have to get used to you saying 'my wife,' too," she said. "Let me see this ring, Sydney!" Why did everyone always want to see the ring, I wondered? I was tempted to tell her that diamonds weren't actually scarce; they were held in reserve by the De Beers family to artificially inflate their price. But I bit my tongue and held out the ring for her, and she examined it cooly. "It's beautiful," she said. "Not quite as showy as I would have guessed."

"She wouldn't let me get the one I wanted to get," Adrian said, sulking. "It had a diamond about the size of a ping-pong ball."

Lissa laughed, a sound like the tinkling of bells. "Of course," she said. "That's our Adrian."

Adrian laughed along good naturedly, but I had to bite my tongue again to keep from pointing out that Adrian was mine, not "ours." "I'd appreciate it if our engagement doesn't become common knowledge just yet, Your Majesty," I said.

"Call me Lissa, please, Sydney. We're almost family now. And of course, I completely understand. It will be kind of awkward, won't it? To have a human marrying a Moroi – and a royal Moroi, on top of it all?" She shook her head. "Some people won't understand at all."

"And you?" I asked. "How do you feel?"

"Well," she said, a little awkwardly. "As Adrian's friend, I think the most important thing is that he's happy. And you look great, Adrian." Her eyes grew slightly unfocused for a moment as she looked at the spot over Adrian's head. "I'm not seeing any darkness at all in you."

"You either," he said. "Still wearing Sonya's rings?"

"I get a new one every month," she said, smiling. "They're a miracle. I'm sure she'd make one for you if you asked."

"I'll think about it," Adrian said.

The conversation drifted to the topic of Sonya and Mikhail, and I realized that Lissa had managed to avoid answering my question directly. I got the distinct impression that she wasn't too fond of the idea of Adrian marrying a human, but at least she wasn't making a big deal out of it. I told myself to be thankful for small favors.

I managed to mingle for the next half hour or so. Thankfully, Rose and Eddie were always happy to draw me into conversations, and the beer that everyone was drinking was making most of the guests a lot more relaxed and talkative than maybe they would have been ordinarily.

Dimitri and I had just started talking about the karate class the girls had joined when little Andre toddled back down the hallway from Amy's room, crying.

"Mommy," he said, trying to climb into Lissa's lap, which was currently occupied by baby Freddie. "Mommy, the big kids are being mean."

"Oh, poor Andre," Lissa said, reaching out to wipe some of his tears.

"Come here, buddy," Christian said. He was sitting next to Lissa on the couch, and he helped Andre into his lap. "What's going on?"

"The big kids... are being... mean," Andre said, between sobs.

Lissa and Christian exchanged glances. "You want to take this one?" Lissa said to Christian, and he nodded.

"Come on, buddy," Christian said, picking Andre up. "Let's go talk to the big kids."

"I'll go with you," I said. "In case it's my girls who are the problem."

"Cool with me," he said, and we headed down the hall.

As we walked, Andre repeated his complaints in a series of breathy sobs, saving Christian and me the trouble of making conversation, and I found myself thinking about the fact that Christian was actually the father of four of the children in Amy's room. It must be difficult for him to watch another man raise his sons, I thought.

I opened the door to Amy's room and we walked in. Immediately, Cole and Zach ran over to give their "uncle" a hug. Christian put Andre down and introduced himself to my daughters. "You must be Amy," he said. "You look so much like your mother." Amy smiled. "And you're Violet, right?" he said to the younger girl, and she nodded. "You remind me of your father, you know that?" Violet shook her head, confused. "You have the same great smile as Adrian," Christian said, bopping her on the nose, and she giggled. "See? Same smile."

"So, kids," I said. "Does anyone want to tell me what happened to upset Andre?"

"I don't know," Zach said. "We weren't trying to be mean."

"We were playing Volcano," Cole said. "You know... the floor is lava."

"Sounds like fun," Christian said, his hand resting on Zach's shoulder. I saw him looking at the boys with a slightly wistful expression.

"Andre doesn't like that game," Margot said. "I tried to tell him that he had magic shoes that the lava couldn't touch..."

"I don't like lava," Andre sobbed.

"And then he wanted to hug Big Bear," Amy said, looking over at the corner of her room. There stood the enormous teddy-bear that my father had given her for her seventh birthday. It was four feet tall and almost as wide, with a huge fuzzy belly that begged to be hugged. I could see why a four-year-old would want to cuddle with a bear like that.

"You didn't want to let him play with Big Bear?" I asked.

"It's a present from Grampa," Amy said, pouting. "I didn't want it to get ruined. He might not give me any more presents once he finds out that … I'm … you know. _Special_."

"Oh, sweetheart," I said, and knelt down to hug her. "I understand that. But I don't think Andre is going to ruin Big Bear."

Amy looked over at Andre, who was pouting, his lower lip trembling as he looked over at the bear. "Ok," she said, reluctantly. "Andre, you can play with Big Bear."

The little boy's face lit up with joy and he ran over to all but dive into the huge stuffed animal. I gave Amy another hug. "You did great, honey," I said. "Really. I'm proud of you."

Violet was watching Andre, who had sat down in the bear's lap. "Hey," she said to him. "Do you want to come over to my room and play there? There's no lava there."

Andre smiled shyly. "Ok," he said. "Can I take Big Bear?"

I looked over at Amy, who nodded.

"Let me help with that," Christian said, and, picking up the huge stuffed animal, followed Violet and Andre out of the room.

"Other than that, you kids all getting along?" I asked, looking around.

"Oh, definitely," Cole said, smiling. "Amy has cool toys." Zach nodded his agreement.

"And _she's_ really cool," Margot said, with a smile that transformed her face and made her look surprisingly beautiful.

Amy smiled. "Thanks, guys," she said.

"Well, I'm glad you're all having fun," I said. "I'll see you later, ok?"

They all said goodbye and I left the room, running into Christian in the hallway.

"You've got two great kids there," he said, as we started to walk back to the main room. "They're really sweet."

"You've got some nice kids, yourself," I said. "Five of them, I guess, huh?"

Christian sighed. "Don't let Lissa hear you say that," he said. "I only _really_ have three."

"Oh," I said. "Sorry."

"It's ok," he said. "It's just a little... you know... awkward. Sometimes."

"But I thought the whole thing was Lissa's idea," I said.

"It was," he said. "And she's ok with it most of the time. But she just gets uncomfortable when people notice the resemblance between me and Rose's kids." He sighed again. "I guess the way I see it is, those boys are kind of lucky. I mean, they have two dads who love them, so what could be bad about that?"

We stopped walking at the entrance to the living room. "Is it difficult for you?" I asked. "I mean, to see them with Dimitri?"

"No," he said. "Well, a little, sometimes. But he's a great dad to them. They're happy kids. And it's not like I don't get to see them." He smiled. "Honestly, most of the time, it's pretty great. We're this big weird family. And now you're part of it, I guess. Are you ready for that? Can you handle all this craziness?"

"I can try," I said, smiling.

"Is it going ok so far?" he asked, his expression growing more serious.

"More or less," I said, carefully, thinking about how difficult this party had been for me. "It's a learning process, you know?"

"Yeah, I can sort of sympathize," Christian said. "I mean, a little. For me... See, my wife was raised to be this perfect princess, and I was raised by a future murderer because my parents were murderers, so... Yeah. Not exactly the same life experiences."

"Yeah," I said.

He looked down at the floor. "It's not always easy," he said.

"I'm sorry," I said. I studied his handsome face. It was hard to imagine someone like him – someone so charming and confident – having any troubles at all.

He seemed to sort of shake himself. "I'm sorry I'm rambling like this," he said. "I don't even really know you that well. I guess I'm just in a weird mood."

"I guess sometimes it's easier to talk to someone you don't really know," I said.

"Yeah," he said. "We'll have to -"

"Christian?" Lissa called. "Freddy needs changing!"

"Duty calls," Christian said. "Or in this case, I guess you could say, 'doody calls.'" He made a face. "I can't believe I just said that."

I laughed. "Parenthood does strange things to people. I'll see you in a bit."

He smiled. "Yeah, let's talk some more later, ok?" he said.

"Definitely," I said, absurdly grateful that one of Adrian's Moroi friends was so sympathetic and easy to talk to. I watched as Christian went to take Freddie from Lissa's outstretched hands, then looked around for Rose, Eddie, or Adrian. But Rose and Eddie looked deep in conversation with Lissa, and Adrian was talking to Dimitri and some of his human buddies. I gripped my hands together tightly, feeling shy all of a sudden. Then the doorbell rang and I went to answer it, grateful that I had something to do.

I opened the door to find Jill, accompanied by her Moroi date. I had barely had a chance to say hello before Jill threw her arms around me, shrieking, "Sydney! Oh my GOD!"

"Hi, Jill," I said, laughing. "Good to see you too!" We pulled apart and I managed to get a decent look at her. She was wearing a form fitting dress in shades of blue and green, and her hair had obviously seen a lot of professional care – it was smooth, shiny, and gorgeous, and went nearly to her waist. She was, as always, breathtakingly beautiful, and I saw Adrian's drinking buddies look over in astonishment. In contrast, her date seemed extremely dull – handsome in a generic way, wearing an expensive suit and a bored expression.

I let the couple in and closed the door. Jill introduced me to her date, Scott, and he shook my hand with obvious distaste as he took in the fact that I was human. As Jill introduced Scott to the other guests, I mused that at least he hadn't asked if I was a feeder.

Once Jill had made the rounds and left Scott to chat with Lissa and Adrian, she pulled me aside. "Let's go catch up!" she enthused. "I want to hear _everything_ about how you are!"

"I'm fine," I said, as we walked to a quiet side of the large room. "Things are great."

"Yes, but it's been ten years, Sydney, and I want to hear absolutely everything! Tell me all about..." But she trailed off then, and I followed her gaze to the kitchen table, where Eddie was standing with his arm around Elise. "Who is that?" Jill asked me, in a low tone.

"Her name is Elise," I said, blandly. "She seems nice. I guess she's a Guardian, judging from her molnija marks."

"Of course," Jill said, with a sigh. "What is she like?"

"I don't really know," I said. "She seems nice enough."

"I'm sure she's great," Jill said, and plastered a completely fake smile on her face.

"Jill," I said, trying to keep my tone as patient as possible. "If you want to talk to Eddie about getting back together, just talk to him. It's not right for you to be annoyed at him for dating someone else when you're the one who has a boyfriend."

"I just started going out with Scott because I knew that Eddie would never come back to me," Jill said, the smile fading. "And see? I was right. He's with this girl Elise now."

"Oh, for heaven's sake," I said. "He only started dating Elise because you were dating Scott!"

"Well, maybe it's for the best," Jill said. "I mean, Eddie's a great guy. He's good looking, and sweet, and gentle, and patient, and funny, and sexy and everything... and a good cook, you'd be surprised. And um, he's pretty great in … never mind." She blushed. "But I mean, yeah, he's a great guy, but he's not the right guy for me."

"Why not?"

"We're just not right together," she said, shaking her head. "He doesn't really care about me, not the way that I care about him. Anyway, I don't want to talk about Eddie. I want to hear about you. Is it true that you have two kids?" She leaned closer and whispered, "And one is with Adrian, from back when we were in Palm Springs?"

"Yeah," I said. "It's true. Want to meet them?"

Her eyes widened. "Oh em gee, Sydney, I'd love that! Can I? Are they here? Would it be weird? I guess they're not scared of Moroi, huh?"

"Not really," I said. "They love Adrian."

"Awww," Jill said. "That's cute. I always thought he'd make a great dad someday. So, where are they?"

"They're down in Amy's room, playing with the other kids," I said.

"Oh, Rose and Lissa's kids are here? How fun!" she said. "Let's go."

So, we went down the hall to Amy's room and knocked on the door. Several chipper voices said we could come in, and we pushed the door open to find the room in even further disarray than when I'd seen it just a few minutes ago. Now towels were bunched up on the floor, probably to form "islands," and stuffed animals were placed in what had to be strategic positions.

"Aunt Jill!" shrieked Cole, Zach, and Margot, and they immediately mobbed her, knocking her over onto Amy's bed in their enthusiasm.

"Hi, lovelies!" Jill said, giving them all hugs and kisses.

Amy stood to the side, watching the scene with interest. Once Jill had greeted the other kids, she looked over at Amy and smiled. "You must be Amy," she said, and got up to greet her. "It's amazing to meet you! Wow, you must hear this all the time but you look so much like your father! I mean, in a good way, of course, like, I'm not saying that you look like a guy, you look totally beautiful! Oh my God, this is so cool!" And before Amy could respond to this flood of words, Jill had grabbed her and hugged her tightly.

"Um, hi," Amy said. "Who are you?"

Jill laughed. "I'm sorry! My name is Jill. I knew your mother and your father back a long time ago, before you were born. We were all good friends, and sometimes we used to tell people that we were all brothers and sisters – me, your mom, your dad, and our friend Eddie."

"I know Eddie," Amy said, smiling. "He's really nice."

"Yeah," Jill said, her smile getting thin. "He is. Anyway, we were great friends for a long time, and that's why I'm so excited to meet you! I feel like we're family already."

"Oh," Amy said, giving her an uncertain smile. "Ok."

"Jill's a model," I said. "She travels all over the world doing fashion shoots."

This impressed Amy a lot more than boring stories of her mother's adolescence, and her eyes grew wide before she said, "Do you know Boyz Willbee Boyz?"

"Who or what is _that_?" I asked.

"They're the latest boy band craze," Jill told me, laughing. "Haven't you heard of them?"

"No, and I can't say I want to," I said.

Jill leaned down to address Amy. "I met the lead singer at a party once," she said. She leaned even closer and whispered, "He's not that cute in person."

"Wow," Amy whispered. "Coooool."

"Aunt Jill is the best," Margot said, putting her arm around her. "She's my favorite aunt."

"Oh, thank you, honey pie," Jill said, kissing Margot on the forehead. "It's so great to see all you kids."

"Are you going to stay around for a while?" Cole asked.

"I hope so!" Jill said. "I'm taking a few weeks off to relax and I want to spend some time with all of you."

"Good," Zach said, beaming.

"So, where's Andre?" Jill asked.

"He's in with Amy's little sister," Margot said, gesturing across the hall. "She's being really nice to him."

"Awww, that's nice," Jill said. "Should we go, Sydney?"

I agreed, and we ducked across the hall to peek into Violet's room. The door was open, so we paused to take in the scene. Violet was sitting in her window seat, and little Andre was sitting so close to her that he was practically in her lap. She was reading him _If You Give a Mouse a Cookie _in a patient, quiet voice. He was looking not at the book, but at her, with a look of adoration so complete it could almost be termed "worship." Even Big Bear had been forgotten, cast to one side of the room, as Andre listened to Violet reading the story. Jill and I exchanged a glance and then continued down the hall without going into the room.

"She seems like a really sweet kid," Jill enthused, once we were a safe distance away. "So patient with little Andre! What's her name?"

"Violet," I said.

"That's a pretty name," she said. "She looks just like you, Sydney. She's beautiful."

It was hard to respond to compliments like that. "Thanks," I said, uncomfortably. "She's very bright. She and Amy are the lights of my life."

"I can see that," Jill said, a little wistfully. "I guess I always thought I'd have a child by now, but... ." She gave a weird laugh. "Doesn't seem to be in the cards for me."

"You still have plenty of time," I said.

Jill shrugged. "I guess we'll see," she said. "Oh, hey, want to see my latest ad?"

So we sat down on the couch, and Jill pulled out a copy of _Vogue. _She had modeled for a famous handbag designer, and she showed me the advertisement. Naturally, she looked beautiful in the photography, but it was difficult to even recognize her under the layers of makeup and photoshopping. While I was gazing at the picture, Jill pulled out a small binder with a few more of her advertisements in it, and I realized that I'd been seeing her face for years without even knowing it, in magazines and on billboards. While she and I were talking, a few of Adrian's drinking buddies drifted over, obviously fascinated by Jill, and she ended up answering some of their questions about what it was like to be a model.

After a while, I snuck away so I could talk to Christian and Dimitri about the sports car Christian was thinking about buying. This conversation was much more my speed than the modeling conversation, and after a while I forgot that I was talking to an important royal Moroi and a 6'7 dhampir Guardian and just enjoyed talking about cars. Dimitri was pushing for Christian to get a Porsche, while I was arguing that Porsches were overrated and tended to underperform. I had just gotten Christian to promise to test-drive a Mustang when we were all distracted by raised voices coming from the kitchen area.

"I'm fine, thank you," Jill was saying to Eddie, who apparently was trying to pour a drink for her.

"I was being polite," Eddie said. "Sorry. Jeez."

"I know, but I'm not an infant," she said. "I can pour my own drinks."

"I was Just. Being. Polite," Eddie said again, with emphasis. "Try to get down off your high horse. Some of us aren't so impressed by you, princess."

"Don't forget who I am, Guardian," she said, acerbically.

"I think there's no danger of forgetting that on _my_ end," Eddie said.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" Jill asked, hands on her hips.

"I mean, maybe you should take your own advice," he said. "It's _you_ who needs to not forget who you are, Jill."

"Oh, shut up," Jill said, lamely, and stalked off.

Almost immediately, a buzz of conversation started up as people all around the room started talking too loud and too quickly to cover the silence.

_(part 2 on the way...)_


	26. The Party (part 2)

_Well, lovelies. Here it finally is! The chapter that almost killed me! (I always think it's hard to write chapters with more than three or four characters in it.) I hope it turned out ok. :)  
_

**Chapter 26: The Party (Part 2)**

After Eddie and Jill exchanged words, Jill flounced over to a chair where her date, Scott Zeklos, was sitting, and sat down in his lap. He made a vague attempt to look consoling. Eddie, meanwhile, sought out his date, Elise, who studiously did _not_ object when he poured her a glass of wine.

Christian, Dimitri, and I just looked at each other, as if daring each other to speak. Finally Christian said, "I think the pressure's getting to her."

"What pressure do you mean?" I asked.

"The modeling, the princess gig, the whole thing," Christian said. "Watching the love of her life bring a date to a party. Whatever. It's making her jump at shadows."

"Eddie isn't exactly being a prince to her, either," I said. "But yeah, she was over-reacting."

"They both were," Christian agreed. "It's a shame, because in a lot of ways, I thought that she and Eddie were really good for each other."

Dimitri nodded. "They seemed to balance one another," he said. "Her weakness was his strength, and vice versa. Or at least, that's how it seemed to me and Rose. We were saddened when the relationship ended."

"I guess they're both their own worst enemy," I said.

"We all are, sometimes," Dimitri said. "Some of us, more literally than others."

There was an indescribable sadness in his eyes as he spoke those words, and it hit me forcefully that he probably still, to this day, suffered from his experience as a Strigoi. I reached out a tentative hand to touch his. "You're no one's enemy now," I said.

It was difficult for me to actually touch him, despite the number of years that had passed since I'd seen him as a Strigoi. No matter how kind and gentle Dimitri was now, I'd never forget how he'd looked with the red rings around his brown eyes, with hatred and evil radiating from his every pore. I think that Dimitri knew that it had taken me some effort to make that small point of contact, and maybe that's what shook him a little from his reverie. "Thank you, Sydney," he said, in his serious way, then smiled a little. "That means a lot, coming from you."

The thought that Dimitri Belikov respected _me_, a mechanic and lapsed alchemist, made me smile too. "Thanks," I said, then glanced back over at Jill, still sitting on Scott's lap. He seemed to be ignoring her. I looked around and saw that Rose was talking to Eddie, and that Lissa seemed busy with her baby boy. Jill was smiling, but there was something sad about her posture.

Christian and Dimitri followed my gaze. "I guess one of us should talk to the kid," Christian said.

"I can," I offered. "It used to be my job to look after her."

"It's not your job anymore," Dimitri said. "But it would be kind of you."

"It's still my job," I said, seriously. "I'm the hostess of this party."

Christian covered his mouth as if he was going to laugh, but Dimitri kept a straight face.

"Go on and do your job then," he said. Then the corner of his mouth twitched.

I tried not to wonder what was so funny to them and instead said a quick "see you later" and crossed the room to Jill.

"Hey," I said, putting my hand on her arm gently. "Doing ok?"

Jill's smile lit up her face. "Hi," she said. "I'm great. You know, you and I didn't really get to finish our conversation before..."

"Well, let's go hang out in my room for a while and chat," I said.

"You don't mind, do you, Scott?" Jill said.

"What?" Scott replied, which was as good an answer as any.

Jill and I made our way down the hall to the room that I shared with Adrian. Once I'd closed the door behind us, Jill collapsed on the bed and said, "I'm soooo sorry, Sydney. I told you that I wanted to hear all about you and then I ended up just talking about myself. No wonder no one likes me."

"I'm sure people like you," I said.

"No, they don't, they just..." She trailed off, then a resolute look came to her face. "I'm doing it again," she said. "I'm not going to say one more word about myself. You have to tell me all about how you've been for the past ten years."

"You don't want to talk about what happened just now with Eddie?"

Jill sighed. "Do you ever get to where you're like, bored with your own drama?" she said. "Like, even _you_ don't give a shit about it anymore? Like, that's where I am. So tell me about your drama. I really want to know." She gave me a sunny smile and patted the space on the bed next to her.

So, I sat down with Jill and began to talk. I gave her a somewhat edited version of the events of the previous ten years, leaving out the details of exactly how awful Rick had been to me, and focusing instead on the joys of having two such great daughters. Naturally, I had to explain how I'd ended up with Adrian again, and I emphasized the fun of reconnecting with him, rather than the agony of doubt that I'd gone through as I'd considered leaving my old life behind.

When I was done talking, Jill sighed, a dreamy look on her face. "That's so romantic," she said. "That Adrian would just accept both girls as his." She sighed again. "I always wanted the two of you to get back together."

"Really?" I said. "It doesn't creep you out that I'm human and everything?"

Jill turned her head to the side and looked at me curiously. "Did you forget, I used to basically _live_ _inside_ of Adrian's head?"

"The bond," I said, feeling stupid. "Sorry. I didn't forget, I just... wasn't thinking about that."

"Yeah, well, I'll definitely never forget," Jill said. She looked down at her hands. "I used to feel _everything_ he felt. He loved you so much, Sydney. It was weird for me, 'cause, I mean, I'm not a lesbian or anything, don't get me wrong, but like... I used to look at you and all I could think about was how beautiful you were and stuff, because that's what _he_ was thinking, and then I'd feel sad if you rejected him, or angry sometimes, or I'd miss you, or feel so happy if you came by... " She trailed off, a slight flush coming to her naturally pale face.

"I understand what you're saying," I said. "I guess Adrian thought about me a lot back then." Of course, I didn't mention quite how much I was thinking about _him_, too.

"You were _all_ he thought about," she said. "And when you left Palm Springs, God, he was almost suicidal. I figured out that you two had slept together – don't worry, I wasn't 'there' for that, thank gawwwwwd – and I was just shocked that you would have done _that_ and then _left_. Like, I still don't completely understand." She peered at me with interest. "I guess it's none of my business why you would have done that, huh? Why you just slept with him and left like it was nothing?" There was a tinge of anger in her voice, and I guessed that she was remembering the feelings of hurt and betrayal that she'd experienced through the bond, ten years ago.

"It really _isn't_ your business," I said, gently. "I guess I'll just say that I didn't mean to hurt him. I thought of it as a way for both of us to say goodbye."

Jill's eyes narrowed. "Interesting," she said.

"It was ten years ago, Jill," I said. "And I paid for that mistake for the entire ten years. Probably more than Adrian did."

Jill seemed to shake herself off a little, then looked back at me. "You're right," she said. "I can see that, and I'm sorry, I didn't mean to pick on you, I mean, I'm sure you just sort of thought you were doing the right thing, and honestly – Rick? I think I'd like to see him strapped to a fire-ant nest."

I laughed. "That's a creative solution," I said.

"Not above what you would have done, when you were younger," Jill said, with a knowing look.

"Anyway..." I said, changing the subject. "So now you're all caught up on my life – why don't you tell me more about yours? What on earth just happened with Eddie?"

She sighed. "I don't know. I guess it just bugged me that he'd be all willing to pour me a glass of wine when he wasn't willing to do the other things, you know?"

"What other things?"

She paused, pursing her lips in thought. "I guess that's just it. I don't really want him to do anything. I just want him to like, be there. Just be there and be Eddie and not be my Guardian or my servant or anything. Just like... be my boyfriend. But... that's not what he wants."

"How do you know that for sure?" I said. "I get the impression from him that he might want the same thing that you do."

"Then why'd he bring a date to the party?"

"Why did _you_?" I asked, in exasperation.

Jill sighed again. "It's complicated," she said.

"This isn't Facebook," I said. "It's not so complicated. If you love him, go and tell him. But _not_" – I hurried to add – "during the party, ok? I want this party to go as smoothly as possible for Adrian."

Jill smiled. "I won't ruin your party, Sydney. I promise. But I... I might talk to Eddie sometime soon." She stood up and I did the same, then she turned and gave me a hug. "I'm so glad you're back, Sydney," she said. "I really missed you."

"I missed you, too," I said, automatically, and then realized that it was true.

"Let's go back to the party," she said, and I agreed.

When we showed up in the living room again, Adrian looked over and said, "There you are, sweetheart!" He came over to me and, cupping my face in his hands, kissed me. This wasn't any little peck, either. This was a kiss that said a lot, and it was saying it loud and clear in front of a lot of people who weren't really used to seeing a human and a Moroi kissing. I heard a few approving whoops, and I pulled away, embarrassed. I looked around and saw Rose grinning, and Christian giving us the thumbs up. Lissa looked a little embarrassed, while Jill just seemed pleased.

"I would like to raise a toast," Adrian said. "Since obviously I have your attention at the moment... ." A ripple of laughter went through the group. "I would like to raise a toast to my always brilliant, always beautiful fiance, the mother of my children, the love of my life... . Sydney Sage!"

Everyone applauded and raised their glasses to me. I looked around, not sure how to react. Were they actually raising a toast to me, or were they just being polite because it was Adrian's birthday? But the welcoming looks on everyone's faces – well, everyone but Scott Zeklos – spoke of loving acceptance. I thought I'd be mortified, but after a moment, I just found myself smiling.

"I guess I'll raise a toast back," I said. "To the birthday boy. My best friend, my love. My... Adrian." There was so much more I could have said about Adrian, but at that exact moment, words failed me, and my throat closed. So I just reached out to take Adrian's hand, and he smiled.

"To the birthday boy!" Christian said, rescuing me, and everyone else agreed and raised their glasses.

When a general babble had resumed, and a few people came over to say "happy birthday" to Adrian again, Lissa came close to me and murmured, "Cake time, you think?"

"I think so," I said, quietly, and Lissa nodded. She had brought the cake from some royal bakery, and now she and Christian went to the fridge to get it ready while Dimitri ran to collect the children from Amy's room. Christian used his fire magic to light the candles, and I was thankful that Adrian's human buddies had had so much beer by then that they didn't even notice. Then Lissa and Christian brought the huge cake over to the dining area while I dragged Adrian over to his spot at the table, and we all sang "Happy Birthday" while the kids jumped up and down in delight.

"Two birthday cakes in one day?" Adrian said. "Best birthday ever." And he closed his eyes and made a wish before he blew out the candles.

Several guests had brought gifts, and once we had cut the cake and begun to pass out pieces to everyone, Adrian opened the presents while Amy and Violet sat on either side of him on the couch in a proprietary sort of way.

While Adrian was opening a present from Jill – it turned out to be a ridiculously expensive men's shirt that she apparently had gotten as swag at a recent modeling gig – Scott, her date, asked, in a fairly loud tone of voice, "Aren't there any feeders here? What kind of party _is_ this?"

Jill was busy with Adrian and apparently didn't hear Scott's comment, but Lissa definitely had. She was trying to soothe a fussy Freddie but she immediately passed the baby to Christian and marched over to Scott. "Scott Zeklos, you will be quiet about that sort of thing immediately," she said quietly, but with intensity, and I realized instantly that she was speaking not as Lissa, but as Queen Vasilisa Dragomir, monarch of all Moroi. "You are at a party hosted by a human friend of mine, who is engaged to a dear friend who might as well be family to me. There are humans present, some of whom don't know about us. You will be quiet and respectful or you will answer to _me_. Is that perfectly clear?"

"Yes, Your Majesty," Scott answered, without even the slightest trace of sarcasm or defiance. He sat down, his mouth clamping closed.

Lissa met my eyes and smiled a little. For the first time, I really had an inkling of just what she was capable of, and her friendship with Rose – that had always struck me as odd and probably one-sided – began to make a little bit more sense. I walked over to her and said, quietly, "Thanks a lot for that. I doubt he would have listened to me."

"He wouldn't be listening to me either, if I weren't queen," Lissa said. "He's a moron. Prime example of what's wrong with Moroi royalty. Whatever. Don't think about it."

"I guess I could have gotten a feeder," I mused. "I mean, he or she could have hung around in the studio downstairs..."

"You're not obligated at all," Lissa said, patting my hand. "You're human. These things must seriously weird you out."

"They do a bit," I said. "I mean... I'm trying. For Adrian."

"You must really love him," Lissa said, scrutinizing my face.

"Of course I do," I said. How could I tell this woman how I felt about Adrian? I shrugged. "You know how he is." I looked down at my hands. Part of me wanted to begin listing everything I loved about him: the sound of his voice and his laughter, the scent of his skin, the feel of his warm body curled around mine as I drifted off to sleep every night... But our love was for me and him – and not for anyone else. So I kept my mouth closed.

"Looks like he's getting along pretty well with Violet and Amy," Lissa said, glancing over at the couch, where Adrian was letting Violet "help" him open one of his presents, one of his arms around Amy's shoulders.

"He's more of a father to Violet than her own father ever was," I said. "And as for Amy... well, they've been inseparable since they met."

"Good fathers are extra sexy, aren't they?" Lissa commented vaguely. I followed her gaze to see that she was looking at her own husband, who was holding cranky Freddie and consoling him with jiggles and soothing words.

"They are," I said, stifling a laugh. This wasn't exactly a queenly conversation, and the look of admiration Lissa had for her husband wasn't queenly either. "And Christian must be a great dad," I added, "because Margot and Andre seem like nice kids." I wasn't quite sure about that yet, but I felt like it was the diplomatic thing to say.

"They're wonderful," Lissa said, fondly, then looked at me with a slightly guilty look on her face. "And speaking of them... I'm sorry to say it, but I have to get them home pretty soon. Moroi that are Margot's age need to see feeders pretty regularly, while they're growing so much. I have to get her home for that. And Andre's overdue, too."

"Oh," I said, not letting my face register any reaction as my mind flashed images of tiny Andre biting someone's neck. "Fine, I understand how that could be the case."

"We're not leaving right away or anything," Lissa said. "Maybe in a half an hour or so. But for right now, I should at least go feed Freddie – a bottle, I mean. I think that's what he needs right now."

"You can use my room, if you need a quiet spot," I said.

"I appreciate that," she said, smiling. "Sorry again about Scott Zeklos. Maybe, if we're lucky, Jill will dump him before it goes much further." She walked away to take Freddie from Christian's arms – I noticed that Christian seemed a little reluctant to part with his small son – and I was left to wonder at the fact that Lissa didn't seem to want Jill to marry Scott Zeklos, regardless of his suitable bloodline.

I got myself another diet Coke, then stood watching Adrian opening his presents for a few minutes. I was making a mental note of all the thank-you cards I'd have to send out when I felt a small tug on my shirt. I looked down to see Violet, who had appeared out of nowhere. She was fidgeting uncomfortably. "Yes, honey?" I said.

"Mommy," she whispered, and I hunched over to listen. "Someone went into the bathroom before," she whispered. "And they're still in there. And I have to _go_..." She gave me a miserable look and resumed fidgeting.

"You can use the one in my room," I said.

"The queen is in your room with the baby," she whispered. "Margot told me. And Margot says that you have to be really quiet when someone is taking care of a baby. I can't go in there."

"I'll go with you," I said. "Lissa's very nice. She won't mind."

Violet shook her head violently. "No," she whispered, her eyes wide. "No, no, no, Mommy, please."

I sighed. Exhaustion was starting to take its toll on Violet, and I didn't want her to lose her composure. "Ok, honey," I said. "I'll try to help."

Violet smiled gratefully and took my hand, and we headed down the hall to the kids' bathroom. "Did you see who went in?" I asked her as we walked.

"Two people," she whispered.

"_What_?" I exclaimed.

"One is the nice man, who helped us at the fire," Violet said. "Not Zach's dad, the other one."

"Eddie?" I suggested, and she nodded. "And who else?"

"The lady," she whispered.

"Elise?" I asked. "With short hair?"

Violet shook her head. "I don't know," she said.

"Here, wait in your room a second, ok?" I said. I had no idea what was going on in the bathroom, but I thought that maybe it was better for Violet not to be watching as I tried to figure it out.

Violet nodded and did as she was told. Once she was in her room, I knocked on the door. There was no answer. I knocked again, and tried the door, expecting it to be locked. To my surprise, it opened right away. And there in front of me were Eddie and Jill – kissing. Eddie's shirt was off completely. One of his hands was in Jill's hair, and the other was around her waist. Jill was running her hands over his back and kissing his neck, and she was so intent on what she was doing that she didn't even notice me coming in. It was only when Eddie began pulling away from her that she turned around. Her eyes flew open wide and the two of them sprang apart.

"Violet has to use the bathroom," I said, calmly. "Do you guys want to go make out in the art studio downstairs? I can get the key for you."

"Sydney," Jill said. "I'm so sorry. We didn't mean... ."

"I spilled some wine on my shirt," Eddie said. "Jill was helping me, um, rinse it off... ." He gestured at the sink, where his shirt was soaking in a small pool of soapy water.

"Right," I said. "Do you want to borrow one of Adrian's shirts?" I looked at Eddie's muscular shoulders and back, mentally measuring him. "His shirts might be a little tight on you, but maybe we could find something," I said. Had Eddie always been that muscular? For a split second, I felt very slightly guilty that I was appreciating my friend's body as much as I was, but then I shook it off. I was madly in love with Adrian, but not _dead_.

"Um, thanks," Eddie said. "Yeah, I don't think _this_ shirt is going to be dry any time soon."

The three of us left the bathroom together, and when I knocked on Violet's door, she streaked past us to the bathroom and closed the door behind her.

"Jill, let's go out to the party together," I said briskly. "Eddie, why don't you wait a minute in Violet's room, and I'll come back with one of Adrian's shirts, ok?"

"Thanks," he said. "I'll, um, I'll wait... for the shirt..." He ducked into Violet's room, and I heard him laughing as Jill and I walked away.

"So," I said to her. "You weren't going to start anything at the party...?"

"It just happened!"

"You tripped and landed with your lips on his neck?" I said.

"Kind of," she said, miserably.

"Look," I said. "Just try not to ruin the party, ok?"

"I won't!" she said. "Listen, do you have any perfume or anything I could put on? I must smell like Eddie now. Someone might notice."

"Come on," I said, and took her through the living room and down the hall to my room.

Lissa was still in there, giving a now-content Freddie a bottle, and we smiled at her and whispered out hellos as we went to the master bathroom. I pointed out the shelf where Adrian kept his colognes, figuring that at least one of them had to be reasonably unisex, then left her to choose and went back out to the bedroom to look for a shirt for Eddie. To my surprise, Jill closed the door, and soon I heard water running. I realized that she was trying to wash Eddie's scent off her hands, face, and... god knows where else.

"What's going on?" Lissa whispered, as I dug through Adrian's dresser drawers, looking for a shirt that might fit over Eddie's muscular frame.

"Eddie spilled wine on his shirt," I whispered back.

"But what's wrong with Jill?"

"She's fine," I said. "She just wants to wash her face, I guess."

Lissa made a skeptical sounding noise but didn't say anything.

I held up one of Adrian's shirts to examine it. It had never fit Adrian all that well – it was far too loose – and I figured he wouldn't mind parting with it, at least temporarily.

"I better get this to Eddie," I said quietly, holding up the shirt. "Poor guy is half naked."

"What a trial for all of us," Lissa murmured, eyes sparkling. I was liking her more and more.

I slipped out of the room, closing the door behind me quietly so as not to disturb the baby, then casually strolled through the living room, noting Violet chatting happily with Zak and Andre, and on to Violet's room to give Eddie the shirt. He took it from me and went into the bathroom, presumably to do more or less what Jill was doing. I sincerely hoped that Elise would not smell Jill on him – and not just for the sake of the party. I knew that she and Eddie weren't that serious yet, and for all I knew they hadn't had any kind of "talk" yet about commitment, but finding out that your date had kissed someone else at a party couldn't feel all that great.

I was wondering whether this incident between Eddie and Jill had been a one-off event or the signal of a new start for them when I heard Adrian calling my name. I turned around and saw him waving at me from the kitchen area. All of a sudden, I was so glad that I wasn't in Eddie and Jill's position – unsure, fumbling, confused. I went to my fiance's side and put my arms around him, then leaned my head against his chest.

"Well, hello," he said. "I feel like I've hardly seen you all night."

"I'm just trying to keep a handle on things," I said.

"You're keeping a handle on things?" he repeated, mischievously. "_I've_ got something you can –"

"Shh," I said, hitting his arm and leaning away from him.

He laughed, then picked up a glass from the counter and held it out to me. "I mixed this for you," he said, as I took the glass. "It's orange juice and seltzer," he explained. "Sort of a mock-tail for you. I read in _Scientific American_ that orange juice is high in folic acid and that it's good for the ladies."

He looked so proud of his mock-tail (and his internet research) that I had to give him a quick kiss. "I love you," I said, fondly, more loudly than I had intended, then resisted the urge to actually cover my mouth with my hand.

"I love you, too," Adrian said, grinning, and kissed me. "Come on," he said, putting his arm around me. "Let's go sit down. And stop worrying about the party. Let people take care of themselves. I want you to try to have fun, ok?"

"I'll try," I said, letting him steer us towards the couch. Adrian sat down next to Christian and I joined him, and soon we were talking about muscle cars again. After a few minutes, Lissa emerged from the bedroom with little Freddie and sat down on my right.

"Want to hold him?" she asked, holding out the baby.

"Of course," I said, though I was a little bit nervous. Would the baby bite me or something? But the longer I held him, the less I thought about his tiny fangs. He had eyes the color the Caribbean ocean, and, now that he was in a good mood, he had a great giggle. I bounced him on my leg, humming a little song, and he laughed and laughed like he was having the time of his life. I had almost forgotten how much fun babies could be.

"Can I hold him?" Adrian asked, after a moment, and I passed the baby to my left. "Hey, Frederick Dragomir!" Adrian said, in an affectionate tone. "Hey, little guy! When you get older, I'm going to tell all your girlfriends about the time I changed your diapers!" Freddie giggled again. "Yes I am!" Adrian said. "Yes, I am!"

"Hey, man, that's _my_ job," Christian said. "It's my job to embarrass him in front of his friends. As his honorary uncle, it's your job to give him the stuff that Lissa and I forbid him to have and give him advice he doesn't need."

"Sounds about right," Adrian said, and continued bouncing the baby on his knee. "Do they make Mustangs for babies, do you think? Little ones they can ride around the house in?"

"If they don't, they should," Christian said.

"They could run on diapers," Adrian said. "Right, Freddie?" he cooed to the baby, as if offering a compliment. Freddie giggled again.

_(continued immediately in the next chapter... this chapter was just way too long!)_


	27. The Party (part 3)

_Quick and important note - I posted two chapters really close together. One was Chapter 26 (the previous one, briefly the only one). The second was this chapter, 27, which originally was the second half of 26. _

_Anyway, just go back and make sure that you definitely read Chapter 26 :)  
_

**Chapter 27: The Party (part 3)**

Lissa patted my leg to get my attention, and I turned to look at her. She was smiling and gesturing for me to lean a little closer to her, so I did, while Adrian and Christian continued to discuss tiny Mustangs.

"I have to tell you, Sydney, that I've never seen Adrian as happy as he is tonight," she murmured. "I've never seen his aura so bright and so... balanced. It makes me happy just to look at him."

"That's good," I said, quietly. I didn't know what else to say. What _do_ you say to something like that?

"I think it's because of you," Lissa said.

I nodded. "Well, he and I make a good team," I said, then looked away. Jill was just emerging from my room, and she was obviously trying to look as if nothing had happened as she struck up a conversation with Rose and Dimitri. Elise and Eddie, meanwhile, were talking animatedly with a couple of the remaining human guests.

Lissa went on. "I know we don't know each other well yet," she said. "But I really want to welcome you to the family. And I mean that, Sydney. You're pretty great, you know? Not only are you obviously the best thing that has ever happened to Adrian, but you saved Rose's life back in the day, and you were instrumental in helping us get the information we needed to restore Dimitri's soul."

"I was just doing my job," I said. "And..."

"You were _instrumental_," she said. "I don't forget things like that. I'd make a pretty bad queen if I did, wouldn't I?"

"I don't know much about being a good queen," I said.

She laughed. "That's ok," she said. "I wasn't really sure either when I started off, if you want to know the truth. But sometimes you just figure things out as you go along."

"I hear you're doing a good job, though," I said.

"I'm trying," Lissa said. "I'm trying to lead my people in the right direction. All of my people – including the dhampirs."

"That's good to hear," I said.

"That includes Amy," Lissa said. "I don't know if Adrian has already told you this, but I've struck down all the restrictive statutes on dhampirs. Amy will have full protection under Moroi law, the same as if she were a Moroi herself."

That didn't fully put me at ease, but I knew what Lissa was driving at. "I'm glad," I said. "I know that things were rough for dhampirs for a long time."

Lissa nodded. "And it's sad to think that great kids like Amy used to be raised to think that their only option in life was to be a guardian. Now Amy can be whatever she wants to be."

"I wasn't aware that you knew much about Amy," I said, then realized that I had spoken a little too brusquely. Lissa didn't seem to take offense, though.

"Adrian's told me a lot about her," she said, then went on with a twinkle in her eye, "So has Rose. Apparently Cole's been talking about Amy more or less non-stop ever since he met her."

I smiled. "She has that effect on people sometimes," I said, then noticed Cole himself coming through the crowd and making his way towards me and Lissa. "Speaking of Cole," I said, gesturing with my head.

"Hi, Cole," Lissa said.

"Aunt Lissa?" he said. "And um, Mrs. Ivashkov? I think you should come to Amy's room."

"What's wrong, sweetie?" Lissa asked.

"Well, I was done with my cake, right? And I was looking for Amy, but I didn't see her. And then I realized that Margot was gone too. So I went to Amy's room, and um..." He leaned closer to Lissa. "I think Margot and Amy are going to do something _bad._" Then he whispered something to Lissa, something I couldn't hear, and Lissa stood up and immediately began almost running down the hall. I quickly got up to follow her. I didn't know what was going on, but Lissa's reaction had made me more than a little worried.

I got to Amy's room just after Lissa did and found Margot and Amy sitting facing each other across Amy's little drawing table. Amy was leaning forward, and Margot had her mouth on Amy's neck. I let out an involuntary yell just as Lissa lunged forward to pull her daughter away from mine. Amy's neck looked a bit red from the pressure of contact, but it wasn't actually punctured, and there was no blood visible either on Amy's neck or around Margot's mouth.

Lissa yanked Margot to her feet. "What are you doing?" she said, in an intense quiet voice. "We don't do that to friends and certainly not to family! What were you thinking? Were you _even_ thinking?" But Margot just looked away, jaw set in a hard line.

Amy looked over at me and burst into tears. I was surprised at her reaction, since she rarely cried in front of non-family members, but I didn't want to make things worse by letting my surprise show. So I just pulled her to me and kissed her forehead. "It's ok," I murmured. "No big deal. Don't worry. We'll get this sorted out."

Margot, in contrast, was looking up at her mother with a slight touch of defiance. "She asked me to," she said. "She wondered what it felt like to get bitten, since her father is a Moroi and she never saw him feed. She was curious. I was just trying to _help_."

"That's no excuse, Margot," Lissa said. "You should have asked me first."

"Am I in trouble?" Margot asked.

"We'll talk about that after we get home," Lissa said. "Get your things together, young lady, because we are leaving right _now_."

Margot's eyes flooded with tears. "I don't want to go home," she said. "I want to keep playing with Amy."

"Me too," Amy said, and ran over to give Margot a hug. "Don't be mad at her. I really did ask her to do it."

The sight of Amy defending Margot made Lissa relent a little. The queen took a few steadying breaths, then knelt down so that she was at eye level with Amy. "I'm glad you two made such good friends," she said. "It was very nice of you to offer your blood to Margot, Amy. A friend of mine did that for me once –well, more than once – and it kept me alive. But you don't have to do that right now. We have feeders who are full-grown and able to give blood, ok?"

Amy nodded, sniffling.

"And I _do_ think we should go home," Lissa went on. "It's time anyway."

Both girls groaned.

"We can have a playdate soon, right, Lissa?" I said, hoping that I wasn't treading on any royal toes with the suggestion.

"Of course," Lissa said. "It's ok. You two can play again soon."

"Oh, good," Margot said, with obvious relief.

"But you and I will have a conversation first," Lissa said sternly to her daughter, and Margot nodded. "And now, let's go find your brothers and your father, ok? And then Amy and Aunt Sydney can come out to say goodbye in a minute."

Margot waved goodbye to us as her mother steered her out of the room. Once they were gone, I turned to Amy again.

"Are you ok?" I asked, looking more closely at her neck. "Did she hurt you?"

"Not really," Amy said. "She said she doesn't really know how to bite yet. Her mom helps her when she goes to the feeder."

"How did this even happen?" I asked. "I don't understand."

Amy shrugged. "I was just... wondering," she said.

"It's not a big deal," I said again. "Come on, let's say goodbye to Margot and Andre."

"Ok," Amy said, and we went out to the living room, where Lissa and her family were now making the rounds to say goodbye.

When it was my turn to say goodbye to Lissa, she gave me a hug, saying that it had been great getting to know me a little better. I kissed giggly Freddie on his cute chubby cheeks, and watched as Andre gave Violet a shy hug.

Christian gave me a hug too and told me that if I ever had came to court, he would take me around personally. "Don't want anyone giving you any shit," he said. "They'll do that, sometimes. They'd do it to me if I weren't married to that gorgeous woman over there." He gestured to Lissa with a smile.

"Thanks for the offer, Christian," I said. "I might take you up on that."

Finally, one of Lissa's guardians hefted Lissa's fashionable – but huge – diaper bag over his shoulder, and the family and their entourage left.

A few of the other guests used the Dragomir-Ozera's exit as a sign to leave, too, and soon the party was whittled down to just our close friends and a few last human guests, who by now were quite drunk and full of love for everyone. With such a small, manageable group, I found myself much more able to relax.

Amy, who was still wide-awake, got into a conversation with Eddie, Elise, and Dimitri about fight techniques and "dhampir stuff." Violet, who didn't have Amy's dhampir endurance, was beginning to look pretty tired. She curled up with me on the couch and watched as Adrian played his Mario driving game with Cole and Zach on the Holo-Wii. Jill and Rose were talking quietly in the corner, probably about Eddie, to judge by their occasional furtive looks around the room. Scott Zeklos went out into the hallway to rant into his cell phone for a long time, and none of us particularly missed him.

"You're losing," Zach said gleefully to Adrian. "You suck at this game."

Dimirtri, who apparently had one ear trained on his sons at all times, called over, in Russian, "What did I tell you about using that word?"

Immediately, Zach smiled and called back, also in Russian, "Sorry, Dad!" Then he turned to Adrian and said, "Sorry if I was rude, Uncle Adrian. But, um, Cole and I _are_ definitely winning."

As Cole and Zach did a little "we're winning" dance, Adrian held the controllers out to me. "Want to show them a thing or two, sweetheart?" he asked.

"Yes," I said. "Yes, I do."

A few minutes later, I had re-taken the lead for Adrian and earned the respect of both of Rose's sons. I handed Adrian back the controller and put my arm around Violet, who leaned her head on my shoulder sleepily.

"She schooled you!" Adrian said, delighted. "Who sucks now, boys?"

"You do," Cole said, matter-of-factly. "You're the Moroi. We're dhampirs. We don't suck at all."

Adrian groaned at Cole's pun and was about to respond when the apartment door opened and Scott came back in from the hall.

"Well," he said, loudly. "I have to go back to Court now. Have to take care of some business."

We all let out polite disappointed sounds, though perhaps a few of them might have sounded a trifle sarcastic.

"Do you want to come back now, Jill?" Scott asked his girlfriend. "Or do you want to stay longer? You can always get a ride back later with someone else, right?"

"I guess I'll stay," she said, casually, her eyes definitely _not_ going anywhere near Eddie. "I'm having fun!"

"Fine, that's fine," Scott said, and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Dinner later?"

"Of course!" Jill chirped, and got up to give him a hug.

"Well, bye everyone, it was nice to meet all of you," Scott said loudly, waving in the general direction of most people in the room.

"Wait, you're going back to court?" Elise said.

"Yes..." Scott said, a little warily.

"Would it be ok if I came with you?" Elise asked. "I really do need to get back in time for my shift."

Scott gave her a quick once-over, as if measuring her worth, and after a moment, he nodded. Apparently she had passed his test. Maybe he was in the market for a new Guardian. Maybe he thought she was hot. Who knows? "Sure," he said. "Plenty of room in my Beemer."

"_I_ can drive you back, Elise," Eddie said, standing up. "You don't need to get a ride with him."

Elise smiled. "Your shift doesn't start for six hours," she said. "And I know you're having fun. So it's cool if you stay."

Eddie paused, obviously unsure. "Well, I _do_ want to stay," he said. "But are you sure? I mean, it's ok if you want me to drive you back."

"I'm _sure_," Elise said. "But we should hang out next weekend, deal?"

"Definitely," Eddie said.

We all said goodbye to Elise, even Jill, who gave her an extremely quick hug. Then Eddie walked her to the door of the apartment and gave her a hug and a kiss goodbye before she and Scott left.

After that, things began to thin out even more. Richard and Mark, Adrian's friends from the apartment complex, finally had enough beer, and both of them blearily wished us all good night, saying that they had work in the morning. Then a short while after that, Rose and Dimitri said that they had to head home for a meeting before their next shift. Cole and Zach said goodbye to Amy and Violet, and the entire Belikov family left.

And once Rose and Dimitri were gone, there were only two guests left in the house – two guests who were sitting on opposite sides of the room, carefully not looking at each other.

I sent Violet and Amy to their rooms to change into their pajamas and get ready for bed, and the almost complete emptiness of the room became even more obvious.

"Well," Adrian said. "This has sure been an eventful night. Don't you think so, J.B.?"

"Hmm?" Jill said. "Guess so."

"And you, Castile?"

"Sure," Eddie said. "Good party. Lots of fun."

Adrian looked at each of them in turn in that out-of-focus sort of way that suggested he was looking at their auras, rather than their actual bodies. Then he said, "Castile, you have your car, don't you?" Eddie nodded. "And J.B. needs a ride home, don't you, J.B.?"

"I guess so," Jill said. "I was just going to get a taxi..."

"All the way back to court?" I interjected. "Come on, that'll cost a fortune."

"It's not a big deal," Jill said.

Eddie stood up and looked over at Jill with a cautious smile. "Well, um, since we're going to the same place, Jill, I can give you a ride," Eddie said.

"I bet you _can_," Adrian said, grinning.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Jill said, standing up and putting her hands on her hips.

"I think you know what it means," Adrian said.

Jill whirled and looked at me accusingly. "You told him!" she said.

"Told me what?" Adrian asked.

Jill let out an exasperated sound and looked away.

"I didn't tell Adrian anything, but he's... you know, he's Adrian," I said. "I guess he figured it out. But anyway, listen, Jill." Jill looked back at me, sulking a little, and I went on. "I would love to hang out soon. Maybe we could have breakfast some Friday, if you want to come into Philly. I have that day off, and I guess it could be like, your dinner, right?"

"I'm sort of on a human schedule," she said quietly. "I could have lunch with you if that's easier."

"I'd love that," I said, smoothly. "And Eddie, your next day off, come on by for a visit. You're welcome any time. I'm sure Amy would love to see you again, too."

Eddie smiled and nodded.

"But right now, _you_ two have some stuff to sort out," I went on. "So... you know. Go and do that."

Adrian laughed and clapped his hands. "That's my girl," he said. "Tell them what they need to hear, sweetheart. Rock it out."

"Come on, Jill," Eddie said. "Let's go."

"But Scott will get all pissy if he finds out that you drove me home," Jill said.

I was about to point out that Scott's views weren't really the most relevant factor, when Eddie said, with a faint smile, "Is his name Scott? I couldn't quite remember his name. He's just... not memorable to me, Jill."

Jill smiled at him, probably remembering their personal joke about a guy I'd dated back at Amberwood. But then her smile faded. "What about Elise?" she asked.

A shadow crossed Eddie's face. "She's a great girl," he said. "But... she's not you."

"See?" Adrian said, standing up and rubbing his hands together. "Talking already, and right in front of me and Sydney, how much fun this is for all of us! Sooooo, JB, Castile, go hit the road already, and maybe you'll have time to boink before Castile's shift. Doesn't that sound great?"

"Adrian!" Jill said, and hit him on the arm. "Don't be gross."

"Impossible," he said. "I'm never gross. I'm Adrian Ivashkov." He gave her a killer grin. "Now, go on!"

"Let us say goodbye first," Jill said, looking over at the hallway, where Amy and Violet had appeared, dressed now, respectively, in Gryffindor and Ravenclaw themed pajama sets.

Amy ran over to give Eddie a hug goodbye, then offered another, slightly more hesitant hug for Jill. Violet walked over slowly and gave each of them a quick hug, too. Then Jill and Eddie said one last goodbye to both Adrian and me and left. I saw Eddie take Jill's hand before the door had quite shut behind them.

"Ok, come here, ladies," Adrian said, and the three of us came closer to him. He put his arms around us in a big group hug. "This was the best birthday ever," he said. "Ever ever."

We all hugged for a moment, and then, as we pulled apart, Amy said, "This is my favorite of your birthdays too. It used to be just me making you a video. This is more fun."

"What do you mean?" Violet asked.

"Oh, it's hard to explain," Amy said. She took Violet's hand. "Did you already brush your teeth, Vy-Vy?"

"Not yet," Violet said.

"Let's go together," Amy said. "You can use some of my Sailor Moon toothpaste."

"Ooh," Violet said, and the two girls went down the hall together, hand in hand.

Adrian and I watched them go, then he turned to me. "It really was the best birthday ever," he said, and pulled me close. "But I didn't get to see enough of you."

"I told you, I was busy with the party," I said.

"Next time we have people over, I'm going to hire someone to come help," he said. "I want you to have fun too."

"I'm not really a party person," I said. "This was for you, not me."

Adrian looked at me, confused. "You didn't have fun?"

"Of course I had fun," I said. "But it's not how I would have chosen to spend time. That's all."

Adrian again scrutinized my face, then said, slowly, "I guess that in some ways, you and I are kind of different."

"In some ways," I said. "You know. Different attitude towards parties, different species... That's about it."

"Also, you like cilantro," Adrian said.

"Yep," I said. "Do you think our relationship can survive?" I said it flippantly, but for a split second, I doubted. What if Adrian wanted me to be a little more comfortable in social situations? What if...

"I think it will," Adrian said, his smile oddly serious. I think he had picked up on my uncertainty. "For one thing, I already knew that you weren't exactly a party person. I guess I just didn't think of this as a full on party."

"This wasn't a party?" I said, incredulous, and Adrian laughed.

"It wasn't compared to some parties I've been to," he said. "But it doesn't matter. I guess we'll... figure it out as we go along."

"We have so far," I said, and Adrian nodded and pulled me close again.

We gave the girls a few minutes to finish brushing their teeth, then went down the hall to say goodnight. There was no time for stories, but we couldn't exactly skip the tucking-in ritual. I went to say goodnight to Violet first, while Adrian tucked Amy in.

"Mommy, tonight was so much fun," Violet said, as I smoothed the blanket down over her."I hope we can see all of them again – Zach and Andre and Cole and Margot."

"You were so nice to little Andre," I said. "I'm so proud of you." She smiled at the compliment. "You're so good at recognizing it when other people need help," I added. "It's something not everyone can do."

"He _felt_ sad to me, you know?" she said.

"I guess it was hard for him to be the youngest one in the room," I said.

"Maybe that's why," Violet said.

"Anyway, he was the youngest, but you were the most considerate," I said. "That's one of the many, many reasons that I love you so much."

Violet smiled, looking a little embarrassed, but gave me a tight hug. I was giving her a kiss on the forehead when Adrian came in to take over. I gave her one more kiss then went across the hall. Naturally, Amy was already pretty well-tucked in when I got there, since Adrian had already come and gone, but I still sat down on the edge of her bed and re-smoothed the blankets.

"Mom?" Amy said hesitantly. "Are you mad at me?"

"What for, sweetheart?"

"For saying Margot could bite me," Amy said, in a low voice, then went on in a rush: "I didn't know it was bad. I just thought it was ok. She said it was ok because we were both girls."

"It's not about that," I said. "It's just... well, do you really want someone to bite you? It hurts."

"Margot said it feels good," Amy said.

"Maybe it does," I said. "But still. You'd be losing blood, sweetie, and that would make you tired and sick feeling for a little while. Yes, even thought you're a dhampir!" I added quickly, as she opened her mouth to object. "Dhampirs don't feel well after losing blood, either. If, when you're older, you really want to try that sort of thing... well, talk to me then. But you should be fully grown first, honey. Just like how you have to be a grown-up to donate blood."

"Ok," Amy said, watching my face. "I won't do that again. But... you promise you're not mad?"

"I'm really not," I said. "You didn't know about it. Just always ask me about things like that, ok? Anything at all that involves... blood."

Amy nodded. "Ok," she said. "And can I really still be friends with Margot? Can she come visit? Or can I go visit her?"

"I hope so," I said. "Lissa and I will try to set up some playdates, ok? But it's hard, because they live at the royal court."

"The royal court..." Amy said, dreamily.

"It's not as great as it sounds," I said. "For a long time, the monarchy of the Moroi really discriminated against dhampirs." When Amy's eyes widened, I added, "Not Lissa, of course. Rose is her best friend, after all. But the kings and queens before her weren't so nice. So... we'll see, honey."

Amy nodded again. "Maybe I can go to St. Vlad's with her when I'm old enough," she said. "Maybe Ronnie can go too."

"We'll see," I said. "But right now it's time for sleep, missy. I'll see you in the morning, and remember – no complaining that you're tired."

"Ok, ok," Amy said. Then she gave me a quick hug. "G'nite, Mom," she said.

I kissed her goodnight, turned off the lights, and slipped back down the hall to the living room. I found Adrian picking up a few stray plastic cups from the coffee table. "Everything ok?" he asked.

"Amy wondered if I was mad that she almost let Margot bite her," I said softly, glad that we had thought to reinforce the sound-shielding around Amy's room.

"What did you tell her?" Adrian asked, horror-stricken. I knew that for him, this was treading pretty close to "where do babies come from?" territory.

"I told her she had to be full-grown first," I said. "I didn't know what else to say." I sighed. Adrian and I were going to have to have a conversation with Amy soon, and Adrian was going to have to do most of the talking. But I wasn't going to mention that fact right _now_. It could certainly wait for morning.

Adrian shook his head in confusion. "It's strange," he said. "Margot never tried to bite anyone before, that I know of, anyway. But I guess it _is_ a phase some Moroi kids go through, when they're learning how to feed."

"Did you do it?" I asked.

Adrian laughed. "I think I tried to bite most of the dhampir girls in my third-grade class," he said. "The only one who let me was Sabrina Ushakova, and I was so scared that all I did was bruise the skin on her neck and get both of us in a lot of trouble for it."

"You haven't tried to bite me," I observed.

Adrian put down his stack of red cups and came closer to me. "I know how you feel about that kind of thing," he said. "I wouldn't ask you to do something like that."

"Maybe someday," I said. "I don't know." The idea of letting Adrian bite me filled me with a sort of terrified thrill, but as much as I'd come to terms with falling in love with a Moroi and giving birth to a dhampir, I still wasn't sure I was ever going to take on the role of Adrian's feeder – even for a single night.

"Maybe someday," Adrian agreed, speaking softly, then brushed some hair out of my face. "But definitely not while we're trying for a baby."

"Definitely not," I said, and my cheeks colored a little as I remembered how we'd passed the time during our afternoon "nap."

"Speaking of which," Adrian said, and put his hands on my waist. "Maybe we should go 'try' some more," he whispered. "What do you think?"

"Shouldn't we clean up first?" I asked, looking around at the living room area, which was littered with paper plates and plastic forks.

"We can clean up tomorrow," he said. "Right now, there's more important things to do."

"Let's just clean up really fast," I said, and began moving quickly around the room, grabbing leftover cake plates.

Adrian laughed. "Fine," he said. And he grabbed a garbage bag and helped me clean up until I felt that I could at least stand to leave the room in this condition. I was just putting the last paper plate in the bag when I had to stop suddenly. At that moment, I had a feeling I had only experienced once before in my life – a fluttering feeling, a redistribution of energy... . I let out a little gasp and put my hand on my belly.

"What's wrong?" Adrian asked, coming to my side in a flash. "Are you ok?"

"Yes," I said, as a smile came to my lips. "Yes, I am. I think... . Well, remember how I said it could take a few hours?" Adrian nodded. "I think it happened."

Adrian paused. "You think... we made a baby?" he whispered. "Really? On our first try?"

"I think so," I said, fighting back an urge to giggle. "But we still have to see if it implants. It might not. A lot of zygotes don't latch on for some reason."

"But... it could be," Adrian said, as a smile slowly lit up his face. He pulled me close, then put his hand on my belly, though there was really nothing for him to feel.

"Yes," I said, and giggled. "So I guess we don't have to 'try' now."

"But you just said it might not latch on," he said. "We should really go try again, as a back-up plan."

"This egg is our chance for the month," I said. "If it doesn't latch on, that's it for the month. So all we can do now is wait for the stick to turn blue."

"Sydney," he whispered, right by my ear.

"What?" I whispered back.

"I've got a secret."

"What is it?"

He paused, looking around as if to be sure that no one was listening, then murmured, "I'm going to keep wanting to 'try' even when the stick definitely turns blue, just to be on the _extra_ safe side."

I laughed at his dramatics. "What about when I'm like, five months along?" I asked. "When I'll have a big belly and everything?" Then the smile faded from my face as I remembered how disgusted Rick had been by my body both times that I'd been pregnant.

"No matter," Adrian said. "You'll need stress relief then, won't you? I'll consider it my honor and duty to help you... relax." He kissed me, then wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

"What about when I'm only a few days from giving birth?" I asked. "Will you want to stop then?

"I read an article on the _Scientific American_ website about that," Adrian murmured. "Apparently, orgasms can help bring on labor. You might need me to help you out." He grinned again.

"You're insatiable," I said, laughing.

"I'm not," he protested. "I'm just sort of obsessed with you. I'm obsessed with the skin on your neck..." He kissed me just above my collarbone. "And this little bit here..." He ran his finger down my cleavage. "And that noise you make when I do this..." He slid his hand under my clothes and I let out a surprised sigh. "That's the one," he said.

"Come on," I said, laughing, and led him down the hall to our room. When we got there, I told him to wait for a minute while I changed. His eyebrows went up, but he nodded and sat down on the bed. I stepped into the bathroom and found where I'd hidden an outfit earlier, underneath the sink. I quickly changed, then came back out into the bedroom.

Adrian looked at me with surprise and interest. "Nice bathrobe," he said. "Anything on underneath?"

I grinned and dropped the bathrobe, revealing the sexy red negligee he'd bought me for Christmas.

"Wow," he said, drawing in a long breath. "That looks even better in person."

"You think?" I said, turning around in a circle.

"Oh, yes," he said. "Looking at you, I _really_ feel like it's my birthday now."

I got onto the bed and began crawling closer to him. "It isn't technically your birthday any more," I said. "It's past midnight."

"It's still my birthday in Palm Springs time," he answered as I reached him, and then he began kissing me. After a few moments, he gently pushed me over onto my back, and leaned over me. I pulled him squarely on top of me, and he let out a startled, but pleased, little noise. He started kissing me even harder, then made his way down the length of my body, pulling at the negligee so that he could kiss the skin of my chest, then my belly, then lower down...

I let out a gasp. "Whose birthday _is_ it?" I whispered.

"Mine," he murmured, looking up at me. "Isn't it obvious? This is my favorite treat."

I tried to respond, but words were impossible for a while after that.

_A/N: I can virtually guarantee* that you'll like the events of the next chapter. It involves two Mustang convertibles, a lot of fresh fruit, a sunset, and a mini-family reunion. :)_

_*Not an actual guarantee_


	28. Love is Love

**Chapter 28: Love is Love**

"There he is," Jill said, delightedly.

"Where?"

"There!" she said, but she was already off and running through the almost empty airport. I followed at a walk, watching as Jill ran into Eddie's arms. He dropped his suitcase and picked her up, swinging her around in his enthusiasm.

"Hi, Eddie," I said, once they had finished kissing their hellos.

"Sydney!" he said, and gave me a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "Good to see you!"

"How was the flight?" I asked.

"Well, the flight from Philly to Dallas was ok, but the flight from Dallas to Honolulu was... long," Eddie said. "The flight from Honolulu to here was like, nothing. We took off, drank a cup of juice, and landed." He laughed, then added, "You're already so tan, Syd. How long have you guys been out here?"

"Adrian and the girls and I have been out here since Monday," I said. "So five days. Jill got here – what, two nights ago?"

"This is my third night," Jill said. "I love the nights here. They smell warm, and damp, and alive!" She grinned.

"I'm surprised _you_ came to get me," Eddie said to me, as we began to walk towards the exit of the arrivals area. "I figured you'd send someone else."

"Like who?" I asked. "This isn't such a big thing. We told the caterers that we only need food for ten, and that was rounding up. There's only nine of us, including Amy and Violet."

"So it's you and Adrian, the girls, me and Jill," Eddie said, counting on his fingers. "Who else?"

"Did you ever meet my sister Carly?" I asked, as we walked out through the automatic doors to the parking area. Immediately we were engulfed in the warm, wet Hawaiian evening, full of the scent of rain and flowers and the sounds of distant animal chirps. The sun was only a half an hour from setting, and the shadows were long and dark.

"I don't know," Eddie said as we began walking along the sidewalk to where I'd parked. "I mean, obviously I know Zoe but... Carly?" He paused to think. "I don't think so."

"Well, she's here," I said. "She and her friend Joanne are at the house looking after Amy and Violet right now, actually. Adrian is at the other airport, the one on the other side of the island, the Kona side."

"The island has two airports?" Eddie asked, surprised.

"Well, it's... a big island," I said. "That's why they call it 'the big island', you know?"

Eddie considered this, then nodded, smiling. "I guess that makes sense," he said. "So who's Adrian picking up?"

"His mother," Jill interjected. "And if you're wondering, his father isn't coming." She made an annoyed face, then went on. "And his mother is coming alone, without her boyfriend, probably because she's embarrassed or something. As if she has a leg to stand on after her time in Terasov!"

I was trying very hard not to get upset about these snubs, and while I appreciated Jill's anger on my behalf, it wasn't helping my calm. "_Anyway_," I said. "Aside from that, we're not expecting anyone else. It'll be you two, my sister and Joanne, the girls, Adrian's mom, and... me and Adrian. And God."

"That's good enough for me," Eddie said. Then he paused, head cocked to listen to a sound that I had grown used to in the few days that I'd been here. It was a repetitive, two-note chirp. "What is that noise?" he asked. "That chirping noise? Is it mechanical, or animal?"

"It's a frog," I said. "To be specific, it's the coqui frog, Latin name _Eleutherodactylus coqui. _It's calling for a mate. They were originally from Puerto Rico, and a few of them got over here and flourished, and it's a big problem for the island's ecosystem."

"I like them," Jill said. "They're atmospheric."

"I don't really mind them," I said, scanning the row of cars. "But I guess I'd feel differently if I lived here. I mean, each adult frog's chirp can reach about 90 decibels!"

"If I had to listen to loud, love-sick frogs every night, I guess I'd get sick of them pretty fast," Eddie said.

I smiled at his comment as I pointed to a car. "It's that one," I said. "The white convertible." We crossed the street towards the car and I hit the button on my keychain to pop the trunk.

"Nice ride," Eddie said, appreciatively, as he put his suitcase into the trunk. "What is this, a Mustang?"

"As if I'd rent anything else," I said. "We actually rented two cars, because there are so many of us."

"Both Mustang convertibles," Jill said, laughing, as she climbed into the back seat a little awkwardly.

"I can sit in the back," Eddie offered.

Jill shook her head. "I like it, actually. You get the full convertible experience." She grinned and pulled her long hair into a loose ponytail.

"Let me know if it gets too much," I said, getting into the driver's seat. "I can always close the roof."

"Leather interior," Eddie commented, as he sat down in the passenger seat.

"Of course," I said. Jill ducked down to give me a better sightline as I backed out of the parking space. "So, how've you been, Eddie?" I asked, as I began navigating our way out of the small airport.

"Oh, same stuff, new day," Eddie said. "Really, I wish I could have come out here sooner. I just couldn't get off of work."

"That's ok," I said. "I'm glad you're here now." A lot of our friends hadn't been able to attend the wedding, but Adrian and I didn't really mind that. We had agreed on a small private ceremony to draw as little attention as possible.

"Wait until you see the place we're staying," Jill said. "It's huge! There's like, what, ten bedrooms?"

"Something like that," I said.

"Is it a hotel?" Eddie asked.

"No," I said. "Adrian and I rented a huge beach house for the week. It's got space for all of us. But he and I are going to move to a small, cozier house for the honeymoon."

"What's going to happen with Amy and Violet?" Eddie asked.

I stopped at the light at the airport's exit, then turned right to get on the main road that led along the coast, up north from Hilo. "They're going to go back to Philadelphia," I said. "They're going to stay with Rose and Dimitri for a week. That's why we came out here so far in advance. We wanted to have a family vacation first, so they wouldn't feel too left out when Adrian and I stayed behind for our honeymoon."

"Smart," Eddie commented.

I wasn't actually looking forward to saying goodbye to my girls for a week, but I tried not to think about it, and focused on how nice it would be to be alone with Adrian in this beautiful place. "Amy is looking forward to having playdates with Margot a lot," I said. "Rose is around Lissa so often that they'll be able to arrange it." Out of loyalty to my younger daughter, I didn't mention the fact that Violet was nearly jumping out of her skin in excitement at the thought of staying in the same house as Zach Belikov. I privately hoped that if she spent a week around the boy, she'd get over her crush, which is what usually seemed to happen with Violet's crushes – they wore off.

"Are Amy and Margot getting to be good friends?" Eddie asked.

"They have playdates about once every other week," I said. Aside from Ronnie, Margot was probably Amy's best friend, which still surprised me. To me, Margot seemed a little sullen and withdrawn, but Amy thought the world of her, and Amy bestowed her affection carefully. There had to be more to Lissa's daughter than met the eye. "They seem to have fun together."

"Aww, that's nice," Eddie said, then yawned.

I looked over at him quickly. Dhampirs don't usually get tired that easily, but Eddie looked a little tired, nonetheless. An all-day journey and a six-hour time difference could do that to anyone. I told him about the bag of macadamia nuts in the glove compartment, and then let him relax in the comfortable leather seat and munch away while I put on the radio to the traditional Hawaiian music station. There were only two stations on the island, so it wasn't as if we had a lot of choice, but the traditional music fit the moment, I thought.

We were passing by the small friendly town of Hilo now. It was full of surf shops and little restaurants, and it seemed like everyone there was in a good mood. Jill and I pointed out a few of the places we'd already gone to – a few restaurants and shops, as well as the spot where the farmer's market was held.

Eddie leaned back with a happy sigh, then reached towards the backseat to take Jill's hand. I glanced over at them when we hit a stop sign, and they were gazing at each other. In the three months since the party, they'd been getting along really well, and it seemed as if they were really on the right track. Eddie had broken things off with Elise – she'd taken it fairly well, he said, since they'd only been on two dates – and Jill had dumped Scott. Scott hadn't taken it well at all, and had in fact proceeded to call her a long list of very rude words. "That made me glad I did it," Jill told me when she called me that night, tearful but determined. "Why do guys do that, insult you after you break up? It's like – we already broke up, dimwit. If you want to get back together, this isn't the way to do it." I'd laughed and congratulated her on her wise decision.

We passed Hilo, then began driving up a beautiful stretch of two lane highway, with the blue waters of the Pacific ocean on our right. When we came to a sign for the scenic route, I turned off the main road, knowing that Eddie and Jill would appreciate the view, even if I couldn't see it very well in the near darkness. We drove through a tunnel of trees, over bridges, around curves, and up and down hills.

"Oh, wow," Eddie said, as we crossed a one-lane bridge over a series of waterfalls. "This is so pretty."

"I'd never been to the big island before this trip," Jill said. "I had only ever been to Maui, for a photo shoot. But so far I like the big island so much better."

"When did you go to Maui?" Eddie asked.

"About a year and a half ago," Jill said. "When you and I weren't... um... talking much."

"How do you manage photo shoots outside in the sun?" I asked, mostly to change the subject.

"I used to just tell them I'm allergic to the sun," she said. "Believe me, I'm not the only very pale, oddly tall and thin model out there. It's almost an open secret in the industry that some models are, well, 'allergic to the sun.'" She made finger quotes around the phrase. "They used to line up the shot with stand-ins, then I would get in for just a few minutes while they actually took the picture. And I'd be wearing SPF like, one million."

"You said 'used to,'" I pointed out. "Has something changed?"

Next to me, Eddie laughed. "You haven't told her yet?" he said.

"Told me what?" I said.

"It's supposed to be a surprise!" Jill said.

"A surprise about what?" I asked, a little annoyed.

"Let me explain when we get back, so I can explain it to you and Adrian at the same time," she said. "It's sort of a surprise for you two, like a wedding present, or like, a honeymoon present, and it's from me and Lissa."

"Fine," I said. "I guess I can wait."

"I have a question for _you_, Sydney," Eddie interjected. I got the feeling that now he was changing the subject. "What is your sister doing here? I thought she was going to be... doing something... with the paperwork? I don't really know what that was. Rose told me but I don't know if even she understood."

"The plan had been for Carly to prevent the news of the marriage from getting to alchemist ears," I said. "She was going to get into Zoe's laptop, which Zoe has a habit of leaving around my father's house unattended, and intercept the alert message."

"But...?"

"But Zoe's on assignment," I said, sighing. "And of course she took her laptop with her."

"Oh, no," Eddie said. "So now what?"

"We came up with a solution," Jill put in. "We're just going to do the whole wedding thing like we had planned, only it won't be legally official. Syd's going to wait to file the actual paperwork until Zoe gets home and Carly can access the laptop."

"Why didn't you guys just push the date back, for when Zoe came back?" Eddie asked.

"For one thing, we had the whole thing planned out," I said. "Plane tickets bought, house rented... . For another, right now is perfect. The girls just started their summer vacations, so they're off from school. And also..."

"Yes?" Eddie prompted.

"Well, I didn't really want to wait too much longer," I said. "I mean, I didn't want to be showing at my wedding."

"Showing?" Eddie repeated, uncomprehending.

"Baby bump," Jill supplied, and Eddie let out a surprised noise.

"You're pregnant?" he said.

"A little louder," I said. "I don't think they heard you on the Kona side of the island..."

"Sorry," he said, laughing. "But I'm happy for you two! This is great news. How far along are you?"

"Just over three months," I said. "I'm due right around Thanksgiving."

"Wow," he said. "Wow."

"So you see?" Jill said. "It had to be now."

"If you didn't want to show the bump, yeah," he said. "Wow. How's Adrian taking it?"

"Taking it?" I repeated. "What do you mean?"

"Eddie is being an idiot," Jill said, fondly. "He assumes that Adrian wouldn't want to have another kid. For your information, mister stupid-head, it was Adrian's idea."

I sighed, wishing that I hadn't spilled so much to Jill over the past few weeks. "He never got to be around for Amy or Violet when they were tiny," I said. "He's excited for the chance."

"Of course he is," Eddie said. "I didn't mean to suggest otherwise. I mean, some men _like_ babies, Jill. Like, for the record, _I_ like babies."

"Right," Jill said, and I got the feeling that this was something they'd discussed before.

"What does your sister think about you having dhampir children?" Eddie asked. "And now that I think of it, what does she think of the whole marrying-a-Moroi thing?"

"She's cool with all of it, actually," I said. "She was actually more nervous about what I'd think about _her_ secret."

"Her secret?" Eddie repeated, confused.

"Carly's gay," I said.

"Really?" Eddie said. "Did you just find out?"

"I think _she_ kinda just found out," I said. "She only dated men up until now. She was even engaged three times, to men. Joanne is the first woman she's ever dated."

"She met Joanne and she just fell in love and that was that," Jill sighed. "She was telling me last night. It's the longest, best relationship she's ever had. I think it's romantic. Like, true love wins over anything and everything."

"I'm just glad she's happy," I said. "It was a little weird for me at first, just because she'd always dated guys – one guy after another. So the news was sort of surprising to me. But of course I don't care who she dates, as long as she's happy and safe and loved."

"Of course," Eddie said, nodding, then he turned towards the back seat. "That reminds me... Jill, did you hear that Jesse Zeklos came out as gay last year?"

"_What_?" Jill said. "Omigod, no _way_! Rose and Lissa told me all sorts of awful things about him! I never really knew him because he was your year but like... _really_?"

"Yeah," Eddie said. "Apparently, he just acted like a womanizing jerk to hide his real feelings. He's a lot nicer now that he's admitted who he really is. He even apologized to Rose for being such an asshole to her in high school."

I didn't know Jesse Zeklos, but I was familiar with the idea of treating people badly because you didn't want to face a potentially difficult truth. I nodded to myself.

"_Anyway_," Jill said. "Back to the point. So, my take on all of this is that Carly like, figured, love is love, or something. Man, woman … human, Moroi, dhampir... royal, Guardian... even former Strigoi. It's all good. Love is love. Right, Syd?"

"Love is love," I repeated, smiling. "But I'm not really sure if Carly's acceptance of me and Adrian has anything to do with her and Joanne. I guess it's possible, though. I mean, something convinced my sister that it was ok for me to marry a Moroi after years and years of alchemist conditioning telling her otherwise. Maybe her own experience with an unexpected love had helped her have an epiphany. Or maybe she would have been ok with it, anyway. It was hard to say. But in any case, I'm just glad to have my sister at my side for the ceremony. I might not have a ton in common with her, but... she's my sister, you know?"

"Tell me about it," Jill said, dramatically. "I'm the queen of having a sister you have nothing in common with. Or I guess my sister is, ha ha."

"You're _my_ queen," Eddie said, and I saw Jill smile in the rear view mirror.

The conversation drifted off, and we listened to the radio contentedly. The scenic section of road came to an end, but even when we rejoined the main highway, the views were still beautiful. It was a little annoying, though, that we kept passing signs for coffee tastings, which reminded me that I wasn't allowed to have much coffee nowadays. Stupid over-protective doctors. And even if I tried to stop for a small taste, I knew that none of the tastings would be open at this hour. For some reason, even though Hawaiians grew amazing coffee beans, they didn't seem to drink the actual beverage past noon. At seven in the evening, forget it. I sighed. There was so much coffee on this island. There were Kona and Ka'u varieties... Peaberry, the most coveted... special 'unwashed' beans with their richer flavors... the light roast and the dark roast... My mouth watered.

"Sydney?" Eddie said. "Hello?"

"Oh, sorry," I said. "What?"

"Is it much further?"

"Oh," I said. I glanced around at the landmarks. "The turn-off is about five miles off now," I said.

"And since we're going about 80 miles an hour, that should take about four minutes," Eddie said, calmly.

I glanced at the speedometer and immediately forced myself to ease off the gas. The Mustang made it so easy to drive at ridiculous speeds, and on these smooth, pretty roads, it just seemed natural to put the pedal to the floor. "Sorry," I said again, and forced myself to keep to a somewhat more reasonable speed as we drove the last few miles to the beach house.

After the turn off, we went down a long stretch of road, down toward the sea. In the distance in both directions, huge wind turbines spun slowly. They looked like guardians, ready to leap to our defense in case of some sort of invasion.

"I love this part of the road," Jill said. "Can you smell the ocean, Eddie?"

"Yeah," he said, breathing in deep. "It's gorgeous."

We passed a few of the other guest houses that were owned by the same managing company, then came to the house Adrian and I had rented. It was at least a five minute walk from the nearest house, which was actually a small guest house where Adrian's feeder was staying for the duration of our visit. The big house was set up on a bluff, and the driveway was a bit steep, but the Mustang purred its way to the top with no problem.

"Ahhhh," Eddie said, as I put on the emergency brake and we got out of the car. "I think I'm going to like it here..."

"I think I'm going to like having you here," Jill said, smiling. Eddie lifted his suitcase as if it were a helium balloon then followed Jill inside. I went around to the other side of the house to the back deck, knowing from experience how to find my girls.

Carly and Joanne were drinking white wine on the back porch, watching out for Violet and Amy, who were playing in the sand near the stairs down the beach. The girls' hair was wet and tangled from the sea water, and both of them had towels around their shoulders. I called to them and they ran up the stairs to give me salty hugs and kisses.

"Come on, let's get cleaned up for dinner, you two," I said, affectionately, and pulled them over to the outdoor shower. The beach house had a great outdoor shower – dual heated shower-heads, plus an attachment to rinse off your feet. Right now, I just wanted to get the worst of the sand off of the girls before they went inside for a proper shower. "Your dad will be home from the airport soon."

"With his _mother_," Amy said, rinsing out her hair. "Lady Daniella Ivashkov." She sounded slightly awed.

"If she's Adrian's mother, is she... Amy's grandmother?" Violet asked, rubbing vaguely at her elbows.

I gently pulled Violet under the main shower-head to rinse her hair, glad that Amy could do this kind of thing for herself by now. "I'm sure she'll be nice to both of you," I said. That was the best I could promise. Adrian had promised me that he was going to have a talk with his mother on the drive back to the house, and I was hoping and praying that the Moroi woman wouldn't say or do anything to hurt my daughters' feelings.

"Will she care that I'm a dhampir?" Amy asked.

"Will she care that I'm a human?" Violet asked.

"I don't know, sweethearts," I said. "I hope not. But Adrian and I love you to the moon and back, ok? So don't worry about her.

"Ok," Violet said.

"If she's nice to me and mean to Violet, I'm going to stomp on her feet," Amy said.

"If she's nice to me and mean to Aim-Aim, I'm going to karate chop her face," Violet said.

"Don't do that, girls," I said, hiding a smile. "Let me take care of it if she does something like that, ok?"

"Okaayyyyyy," the girls groaned. I gently pulled Violet out of the warm water – she had a habit of staying in the shower for hours if no one reminded her to get out – and wrapped a towel around her mop of hair. Amy wrapped another one around Violet's body, and Violet giggled at all the attention.

I sent the girls inside to take proper showers with soap, reminding them that they'd want to be ready by the time Adrian got home, and they ran inside. Then I sat down with Carly and Joanne, suddenly exhausted.

"Hey, ladies," I said to them. "How were the girls? Did they give you any trouble?"

"Amy seemed bound and determined to swim halfway back to the mainland, I swear," Carly said, laughing. Carly's blonde hair was bouncy and perfect, despite the humidity, and as always, her lip gloss matched her fingernails. "I had to call her back in three times! She scared me half to death but like, you gotta hand it to her. She swims like a dolphin."

"Violet, on the other hand, was a peach," Joanne said. She was a tall, thin brunette with expertly styled short hair. She was wearing an off-the shoulder blue and white sundress that looked casual and cozy and had probably cost as much as a month of my groceries. She seemed like the kind of person who could make the latest fashion look comfortable and easy. "I adored her," Joanne went on. "The kid sat by my beach chair building a sand castle the whole time." Joanne laughed. "I think she was making up a story about the people who lived in the castle, but she wouldn't tell me."

"Yeah, that's pretty normal for both of them," I said. "And you guys are doing ok? Not too hungry, I hope?"

"We keep eating these macadamia nuts," Carly whined. "God, Sydney, why did you even buy those evil things?" She sighed, then shoveled a few more into her mouth.

"They always sell them at all the coffee tastings," I said. "I just buy a few bags at each tasting and they kind of... build up."

"How many coffee tastings have you _gone_ to?" Carly asked.

I counted on my fingers. "Seventeen," I said. "But I only drink a tiny bit of each kind when I go... The doctor said I was allowed two cups a day, maximum, until the baby's born."

"And even less while you're breast feeding," Joanne said.

"Trust her, she's a doctor," Carly said, adoringly.

"I'll take that under advisement," I said, smiling, though I knew that caffeine in breast milk wouldn't hurt a baby dhampir.

"And speaking as a doctor, can I say that you look a little tired, Sydney?" Joanne said. "Maybe you should lie down for a minute or two."

"I guess I could," I said. "But I need to make sure the girls get ready. I want them looking their best when Adrian's mom gets here."

"She sounds scary," Carly said, shuddering.

"A little," I agreed.

"Joanne and I will knock on the door in a few minutes and tell them to get ready," Carly offered. "Then I can do Violet's hair, if you want. She'd look so cute with pigtails."

"That's nice of you," I said. "I guess I will lie down for a minute."

"Go on – it'll do you good," Joanne said, and I said a quick goodbye and went inside and to the master suite where Adrian and I were staying.

We had a gorgeous room with a view of the ocean and a private bath. The bed was huge and comfortable, and Adrian and I had been making good use of it. Right now, though, all I wanted to do was lie down for a minute. I wasn't really showing yet, but the pregnancy was still having an effect on me. I was lucky because Adrian could cure my morning sickness and soothe any swollen or sore muscles, but he couldn't really fix exhaustion. I lay back on the bed and...

… sat up with a start. How long had I been asleep? And what were those noises in the hall?

I went out to the living room and found a striking tableau. Amy looked furious and ready to attack someone, and was in fact being restrained by Eddie, who had her by the arms. Violet was sitting on a couch and crying, with Jill by her side. And Adrian was talking in low tones to an elegant-looking older Moroi woman, who was sitting on an ottoman, rubbing her foot, a pained expression on her face.

I sighed. This already was not going well.

_A/N: So, I know that not much *happened* in this chapter, but a lot was revealed, I think, right? Anyway, I'm setting up for the next few chapters. There's this part (with them in Hawaii), and one more part (probably three chapters), then an epilogue. Then it's back to Door in the Tree! Other Sydney and Adrian have been at Chez Gothic Retreat for like, months now..._

_If you're wondering, my decision to make Carly gay came in part because I was wondering why would she be accepting of Sydney's decision, and in part because it really did happen to my cousin, that after being married to three different men and all of her relationships being awful, she fell in love with a woman. Now they're together and happy and stuff and all of us are just glad that she's happy! We never saw it coming in a million years, but who cares? :) Anyway, that's where that came from._

_As for Hawaii... I was actually there pretty recently, and I got to drive a Mustang convertible, and there were coffee tastings everywhere and I was like, "I think Sydney would like this place!" _


	29. Family is Family

**Chapter 29: Family is Family**

I looked from one daughter, who was sobbing, to the other, who was seething. Before I could make up my mind as to who to help first, though, Violet ran to throw her arms around me, and Amy stopped struggling in Eddie's grip.

For a split-second, I regretted that Violet had gotten too big for me to pick up and cuddle, like I would have done when she was a toddler. I had to settle for patting her back soothingly. "What's going on here?" I asked, directing my question mostly to the Moroi woman sitting near Adrian, who I recognized now from photographs as Lady Daniella Ivashkov.

"I really couldn't _begin_ to imagine," Lady Ivashkov replied. She sighed, running a perfectly manicured hand through her expertly styled long dark hair, almost knocking loose the pink hibiscus flower she'd tucked behind one ear. "All I did was explain to the little human that I wasn't her grandmother and then the dhampir just _stomped_ –"

"You said it so mean," Amy interrupted, angrily. "You said that someone like you couldn't be related to someone like _her_. You said it mean."

Violet tugged on my shirt, and I leaned down to listen. "She doesn't like me at all," Violet whispered. "I can tell. Her hands felt mean."

"Her hands?" I whispered.

"When she shook my hand," Violet whispered. "Her hands were mean."

I nodded, knowing what she was trying to say. "It's ok, baby," I said, then looked over at my older daughter, who was still almost trembling with rage. "Amy?" I said, in my gentlest voice. "Can you please take Violet out onto the back porch? Maybe you two can teach Aunt Carly how to play Cat's Cradle."

Amy nodded slowly, then swallowed hard. One of the few things that could calm my older daughter down was being put in charge of someone else's well-being, especially someone weaker and in need of help. "Come here, Vy-Vy," she said, coming closer to take Violet by the hand. "Let's go hang out with Aunt Carly." She brushed a few tears off of Violet's face. "It'll be ok."

"I'll go with you," Jill suggested, then glanced at me for approval. I nodded.

"Me too," Eddie said. "It'll be fun. Come on, Violet. Let's go, honey."

Violet looked up at me, and I smiled at her encouragingly. "Go on, sweetheart," I said. "We all love you. Don't worry about anything else."

She nodded, sniffling, then let herself be led out out to the porch.

I watched the four of them leaving, then noticed suddenly that there was a pile of take-out containers on a small table near the door. Adrian had picked up dinner, just as he had said he would, but I wasn't sure when we would get around to eating it. My stomach growled a little, to my annoyance. Being pregnant had amped my appetite up to 11, but this wasn't the right time to be thinking about food.

Once I was alone with Adrian and his mother, I said, "What, exactly, did you say to my daughter, Lady Ivashkov?"

"Daniella, _please_," she said, standing up. Her crisp white linen pantsuit rustled a little as she walked over to me. "I fear we've gotten off to rather a bad start, don't you think?" She held out her hand. "It's really lovely to meet you, Sydney."

Years of etiquette training forced me to shake her hand. "Hello," I said, awkwardly. "It's nice to meet you too, ma'am."

"Now, as for your daughter," she said. "What happened was, the dhampir girl told the human girl..."

Adrian interrupted. "You know their names, Mom," he said, walking closer to the two of us. "Use them."

She sighed. "Fine," she said. "Amaryllis told Viola that I was 'their' grandmother. I was just attempting to clarify that while I _might_ be related to a dhampir, there was no way that I could be related to a human. It's just a fact."

"Her name is _Violet_," Adrian said. "And I'm planning on adopting her. She will, at that point, legally be your granddaughter. We discussed this in the car."

"Her name is Violet?" she said. "I thought it was Viola."

"No," Adrian said, calmly. "Violet. Like the flower, not the musical instrument."

"Oh, so they're both flowers," Lady Ivashkov said. "How cute."

"And as for saying that you 'might' be related to Amy?" Adrian continued, ignoring her comment. "For heaven's sake, Mom. Did you _see_ her? Do you _really_ doubt she's mine?"

"I know, I know," she replied. "I see the resemblance. I guess we don't really need a paternity test." Adrian made a face, and I realized that his mother might have been suggesting a paternity test all along. My hand curled into a fist. Few things made me as angry as being accused of lying, even in a roundabout way. But Lady Ivashkov was still talking, and I forced my expression to remain neutral. "I just know that some women might want to take advantage of a great catch like you," she said. "It's been known to happen, darling." Adrian closed his eyes and began massaging his temples, tension radiating from him. Lady Ivashkov put her hand on her son's arm. "I certainly meant no offense to your... _friend_, Adrian."

"Wife," Adrian corrected.

"Fiance," she retorted. "Anyway, Sydney," she went on, turning to me. "After I said that I couldn't be related to a human, the human child – Violet – began to cry. And then Amaryllis rather rudely stomped on my foot. It was quite unexpected."

I felt a smile curling at the corner of my lips despite myself. "She was sticking up for her sister," I said. _My little superhero_, I thought.

"I see," Lady Ivashkov said, sitting down again. "Or rather, I _feel_." She rubbed at her foot ruefully.

"Here," Adrian said, resentfully, and rested one hand on his mother's shoulder for a moment. "All better."

"Oh, thanks, darling," she said, in an off-hand way. I realized that she must be used to Adrian healing her cuts and bruises.

"Lady Ivashkov," I said, in my most business-like tone. "Your son is a very important person to me, and he's very important to Amy and Violet, too. I'd prefer that we all get along, but I won't stand for you insulting either of my children."

"_Daniella_, Sydney, I insist," she said. "And the last thing I want is to insult anyone. I really was astonished when the children reacted the way they did."

"How did you expect Violet to react?" I said. "She was hoping to meet a new friend, and you rejected her before you even gave her a chance."

"I didn't reject her," Lady Ivashkov said. "I just said that I wasn't her grandmother."

"That was rejecting her," I said, calmly.

"I really don't understand how," Lady Ivashkov said. She looked at Adrian, and he sighed.

"I think that Violet wasn't reacting as much to your words as your... feelings," Adrian said. "She's a sensitive kid. She picks up on body language and tone and things like that. She was probably picking up on your feelings at being in a family with humans. I can only assume that you're not so happy about it, huh, Mom?"

She considered that. "Hmm," she said. "Well, if she was picking up on my body language, I can try to be more cognizant of how I hold myself and how I express myself, but, well, I can't change my feelings about this... arrangement."

"You mean, our _family?_" Adrian said. "The marriage? The adoption? Our like, awesomely Norman-Rockwell-ish lives? What particular arrangement has you so concerned?"

"Listen, it's wonderful that you want to stay in your daughter's life," Lady Ivashkov said. "And it's nice of you to maintain a pleasant relationship with your daughter's mother. But are you two _certain_ that you want to get married? Surely there's another way to settle things."

"Mom," Adrian said, through gritted teeth. "Are you forgetting the whole part about Sydney being the love of my life?"

"Well, you used to think Rose was the love of your life," his mother replied, then looked over at me. "No offense, of course, Sydney."

"None taken," I said, smiling icily.

"Ok, first, you don't get to talk about Rose," Adrian said. "Not after what you did to her."

"No harm came of it in the long run..." Lady Ivashkov said, but Adrian ignored her.

"Second, I was only 21 when I met Rose," Adrian said. "I was an idiot back then, and misunderstood the difference between loving a challenge and loving a person. But I wasn't wrong when I thought Rose was a great person. She is, to this day, one of my best friends. She wasn't the love of my life, but she was a... friend for life. So there." He nodded, satisfied that his point had been made, and Lady Ivashkov nodded politely, clearly not convinced. "And third," he went on. "Well, I almost hate to mention it, Mother, but since you're being like this, I feel that I have to point out that with your history, you're the last person on Earth to be doling out relationship advice."

"That's different," she replied. She set her jaw in an obstinate line, and suddenly, she reminded me of Amy at her most stubborn. "I'm not saying that I've been perfect," she said. "All I'm saying is, you might want to take stock of the situation and be absolutely certain that this is what you both want."

"Lady Ivashkov," I began, but she interrupted me.

"Call me Daniella," she said, putting a bright smile on her face.

"_Lady Ivashkov_," I repeated, and her smile faded. "Did you know that I used to be an alchemist?"

"Of course," she said.

"Then you must know a little bit about how I was raised," I said.

"You were raised to think that we were evil, right?" she said, smiling indulgently, the way you might when you think about the myth of Santa Claus.

"I was raised to think that Moroi were evil, yes," I said. "I was taught to hate and fear Moroi as I hate and fear the devil himself." Lady Ivashkov's eyes widened, but she didn't speak, and I went on. "I learned that while humans were made in God's image, Moroi and Strigoi were creatures of the devil. No real difference between them, either. I was taught that they were both blood-sucking mockeries of humanity."

"But Moroi are not at _all_ like Strigoi," she said, horrified.

"I was taught that there was hardly any difference," I said. "I was taught that Moroi were more polite, more domesticated, less likely to tear your throat out... But still _evil, _by their very definition, because they were perversions of nature, and ugly in God's sight."

"Is that really what they tell you?" she whispered. "That we're as bad as Strigoi?" She sat back down on the ottoman, one hand on her chest, then looked over at Adrian. "Did you know that, darling?"

Adrian sighed again. "Sydney told me about it, yeah," he said. He was still massaging his temples. "She used to be basically terrified of all of us. She was even afraid of Rose."

I opened my mouth to disagree, then closed it again. The truth was that "terrified" was a good word for how I used to feel about many of the people who were now my closest friends.

"Well, she had good reason to be afraid of Rose," Lady Ivashkov said. "That dhampir is a rather violent young woman."

"Sydney would have more reason to afraid of _you_," Adrian replied, tartly. "You're the one who committed an actual crime and got sent to prison."

There was a long silence, then Lady Ivashkov spoke. "I guess you have me there, Adrian." She looked over at me, a sad smile on her face. "So. You might as well finish your story, Sydney. I'm curious now. Did they teach you to fear and hate dhampirs, too?"

"Yes," I said. "I learned that dhampirs were every bit as bad as Moroi and Strigoi– maybe worse, since they were such an abomination in the eyes of God, a mixing of the bloods. When I first met Rose, I wasn't afraid that she'd _hurt_ me, exactly, but yes, I was terrified to be around her. I was worried that being so near her would corrupt my soul."

Lady Ivashkov eyed me with interest. "Do you still think that?" she asked.

"I'm marrying a Moroi tomorrow, and I have a dhampir child," I said. "What do you think?"

"I guess not," she said, smiling.

"Good guess," I said. "But listen. My point is this: if I overcame all of _that_ to fall in love with your son, do you think that maybe, just maybe, this is real? This is sincere?"

She paused to take that in, then said, "But, Sydney, and again I assure you that I mean no offense, but are you sure that it's really _Adrian_ that you love?"

I narrowed my eyes. "I have money of my own, if that's what you're implying," I said. "And I'm an excellent mechanic and translator and can get a well-paying job in either field."

"Oh, no, no," she said, hurriedly. "I meant... you know..." And she trailed off, apparently flustered.

"No, I don't know," I said. "What are you talking about?"

"Well, one doesn't really _speak_ of it, does one?" she said. "But it's understood, of course. I'm sure an intelligent, educated young woman like yourself knows how strong the addiction can be."

I stared at her as her words began to make sense to me. "You think that I let Adrian _bite_ me?" I said, aghast. "You think that that's what we're about?"

"Am I wrong?" she asked, coloring.

"And with _that_," Adrian said, "I think you've outstayed your welcome. There are lots and lots of nice hotels on this island. Time for you to go find one."

"Let's not blow this out of proportion," Lady Ivashkov said. "If I'm wrong, just say so..."

"You're wrong," I said, flatly.

"Ok, fine," she said. "I'm wrong. I'm sorry. _Really_, I'm _very_ sorry. Sydney? Adrian? Please don't be angry with me."

Adrian got out his phone. "Full bars, good," he muttered, hitting some buttons. "Let's see. Hotels Online should have some good last minute rooms..."

"Oh, darling," his mother said. "Come on. Let's not let it be like that." There was a note of desperation to her voice. "You can't blame me for thinking that, can you? I mean, that's what humans and Moroi _do_."

"Oh, look," Adrian said. "A room for one in Kona. It's not too far from the airport, either. I can book you for two nights and you can still catch your flight home the next day..."

"Adrian," she said. She wasn't raising her voice or wining, but somehow I still felt that she was inches from tears. "I really didn't mean offense. I'm sorry. I just _assumed_. I'm sorry. So... please. Don't take it too seriously. I said I'm sorry and I meant it. I just wanted to make sure that the woman you're marrying really loves _you_, for who you _are_." She sniffed. "I didn't want you to get your heart broken again."

Adrian paused, phone in his hand. "If that's what you're so worried about, then tell me something," he said. "Why didn't you bring your boyfriend with you to the wedding? I don't buy that excuse about him being busy. I think you were just ashamed of me and didn't want him to see it. I bet that if I were marrying that Ozera girl you were trying to set me up with, he'd be here right next to you."

"That's not it at _all_," Lady Ivashkov said. "You don't know the story at all."

"Well, what _is_ the story, then?" Adrian asked. "Did he refuse?"

"Not exactly," she said. "And he's not busy, exactly, either. I lied about that." She sniffed, then dabbed at the corners of her eyes. "If you must know, I never even had a chance to invite Richard to the wedding. He decided to stop seeing me weeks ago."

"What?" Adrian asked, clearly surprised. "But I thought you two were pretty serious..."

"I mentioned that you might be getting married to the mother of your child," Lady Ivashkov said. A few tears rolled down her cheek and she dabbed at them with her fingertips so as not to ruin her make-up. "Richard knew you had a dhampir daughter, but not that the mother was a human. In any case, just the thought of being an in-law to a dhampir was enough to send him packing." She gave a bitter little laugh. "I guess it's a good thing that you're not marrying a Moroi," she said. "Otherwise I never would have known what a shallow piece of dirt he was. Never mind the fact that he used to bring up the time I spent... away... _all_ the _time_. Every time we quarreled, that was his ace in the hole. The 'T -word.'"

I took a few steps closer to her and looked at her more closely. I was mentally comparing her to photographs I'd seen of her, photos taken before she had gone to jail. I could see now that the years she'd spent in Terasov had taken their toll on her. It was natural that she would have aged in ten years, but it wasn't just that. There was something deeply sad about her, a hollowness to her eyes that couldn't be ignored. I thought about her saying that she had just wanted to make sure that Adrian's wife-to-be really loved him. She was dealing with deeply ingrained prejudice against humans and even dhampirs, but she was trying, in her clueless way, to be civil. Some of my anger began to melt.

"Lady Ivashkov," I said, and she opened her mouth to respond, but closed it again. "Daniella," I corrected myself, and she smiled a little. "You're not in Terasov anymore, you know. You're a free woman. And you can change things if you want to."

"I do want to," she said, very softly. She looked over at her son. "Adrian, you're all I have left in the world. If you hate me too, then... what will I do?"

Adrian shook his head wordlessly.

"Sydney," she said, turning to me. "I hope you can forgive me. I just misunderstood. It never occurred to me that you two weren't... in that sort of relationship." A few more tears fell down her cheek.

"I know," I said. "I..." I looked at her, and saw a trace of Amy in her sad face. "Let's just drop it, ok?" I said.

"Really?" she said, looking at me hopefully.

"How about we just get that dinner on the table," I said, gesturing to the stack of take-out containers. "And we can forget all about this, at least for the time-being."

"That would be lovely," Lady Ivashkov said, offering me a relieved smile. "How kind of you to suggest that, Sydney. It's just as my mother used to say, 'quality always shows.' "

I pulled a few tissues from a nearby box and handed them to her, then I looked over at Adrian. "What do you think?"

"She'll have to apologize to Violet," Adrian replied.

"I assumed that she was going to offer to do that," I said, looking over at Lady Ivashkov.

"Well, naturally, I can apologize to the child," Lady Ivashkov said. "Though I do wonder a little bit about the discipline standards in your home if the older one is allowed to stomp on people's feet..."

"Adrian and I will worry about that," I said, cutting her off. She nodded.

"And we shouldn't really be worrying about anything," Adrian put in. "This is a family vacation, and I'm getting _married_, for fuck's sake, Mom."

Lady Ivashkov winced a little at the curse word, but nodded. "Right," she said. "Yes, of course. I'm sorry."

"Sydney can go with you," Adrian said to her, as he came over to me. He put his arms around me, resting his head on mine for a moment. Then he murmured, "I need to lie down for a few minutes. I want to get myself together again."

I gave him a kiss on the cheek, aware that Lady Ivashkov was watching us uncomfortably. "Do what you have to do," I said. "Should we set you a place at the table?"

"Yes, please," he said. "I'm starving, after smelling that food the whole way here. I'll be out a few minutes, ok? Be sure to save me some of that fried ahi." He kissed me one more time, giving me a unconvincing smile, then went down the hall to our master suite, not looking at his mother as he left the room.

"Well," Lady Ivashkov said, once he was gone. "I guess he's in one of his _moods_." Her tone was light, but she looked a little worried. She had had enough experience with Adrian's moods to know that they could be a serious problem.

"I guess he is," I said.

"Well, as for the matter at hand," Lady Ivashkov said, calmly. "I could use some of your advice, Sydney. When I speak to Violet, what do you think she wants to hear? I mean, I can't lie to her. I'm not her grandmother. It don't mean that to be offensive, of course..."

"I think she's more offended that you seemed to not _want_ to be her grandmother," I said. "She was rejected by her real father, and her father's parents died before she was born. My mother died when Violet was just a baby... ."

"Oh, I'm sorry for your loss," Lady Ivashkov said, patting my hand gently. "It must feel quite recent for you, doesn't it? I still miss my mother and she died just years and _years_ ago."

"It um, it does feel recent, sometimes," I said, blinking away a few tears. I was a little surprised at her solicitude.

"She must have been rather young," Lady Ivashkov added. "If I may ask, what happened?"

"It was a... Strigoi," I said, the last word coming out in a whisper.

"Oh, how dreadful," she said, and to my astonishment, gave me a sudden tight hug. "I'm so sorry."

"Thanks," I said, into her shoulder.

"Well, I'm sure she was a fantastic woman, to have raised you," Lady Ivashkov said, pulling away.

"She was," I said, determined not to break down. I swallowed heavily, took a deep breath, and went on. "Anyway. So, the girls only have one grandparent left, and while my father dotes on them, he would almost certainly reject all of us if he knew about Adrian, or if he knew that Amy was a dhampir. So, really, Violet doesn't have a lot of family. Just me, Amy, Adrian, and her two aunts. Maybe she'd like to have a grandmother. I don't know. We've never talked about it."

"Would Violet really want a Moroi for a grandmother?" Lady Ivashkov asked, surprised. "I thought I'd be reassuring her by saying we weren't related. She understands what I _am_, doesn't she?"

"She knows," I said, surprised as well. I had forgotten for a moment that the prejudice worked in both directions, and that it wasn't unreasonable for Lady Ivashkov to expect to be rejected by humans. "And like I said, I don't know what Violet wants," I added. "But... I wouldn't be surprised if she wanted to get to know you better. Or at least, if that's what she _had_ wanted, at first."

"Hmm," Lady Ivashkov said, considering that. "Well. Family is family, after all. And really, human or not, I'd much rather deal with you and yours than most of the Ivashkovs." She sighed. "My ex-husband is not a nice man, Sydney," she said, in an undertone. "And his family? Ugh."

"Yeah," I said. "I can sympathize."

"I bet you can," she answered, nodding. "Well. Anyway. I really must go try to smooth things over with the child. Let me go get something from my bag first, though." And she began digging through her suitcase, which had been left near the door. It was an enormous Louis Vuitton creation that probably cost more than most people made in a year, and I wondered how she had packed so much for just a two night stay. After a moment or two, she pulled out a small black velvet bag and held it up triumphantly. "Here it is," she said. "Let's go."

We walked down the hall and through the kitchen out to the back porch, hearing sounds of laughter coming from outside, but the moment we walked through the large sliding glass doors, everyone stopped talking. Violet, who was sitting in between Jill and Amy at the big glass table, looked away from us, a smile fading from her face. Amy made a loud "hmmph" sort of noise and crossed her arms over her chest. Otherwise, the only noise was the ocean, and the sound of a few coqui frogs, calling out their lonely, two-note song.

I watched as Lady Ivashkov crouched down by Violet's chair. "Well my goodness," the Moroi woman said. "I guess you and I got off on the wrong foot, huh? Get it? Foot?" She gestured to the foot that Amy had stomped on, but Violet refused to smile. After a moment, Lady Ivashkov went on. "I just wanted to say that I hear very nice things about you, Violet. Apparently, you're very smart, and very kind. I hear that you're one of Andre Dragomir's favorite people."

"_He's_ nice," Violet said.

"Yes, he is," Lady Ivashkov said. "And so are you. And I'm lucky to have a nice person like you joining my family. Both of you," she added, looking over at Amy, who scowled. "So I was wondering if each of you mightn't like a little present?" She dug into the velvet bag and pulled out something that sparkled in the bright porch lights. She was offering Violet a diamond tennis bracelet, probably worth several thousand dollars. I was a little embarrassed on her behalf. Did she think she could buy Violet's love? "See, Violet?" she said. "It's a pretty bracelet. It might be a little too big on you, but we can adjust the buckle..."

Violet looked at Amy, who shook her head. "No, thank you," Violet said. "I already have a bracelet." She held up her wrist to show the silver ID bracelet that Adrian had gotten her.

"Oh, that's lovely," Lady Ivashkov said. "Maybe you'd like two bracelets, though? This one is _diamond_."

"No, thank you," Violet said, politely. "I like my silver bracelet. Daddy Adrian got it for me."

"Fine," Lady Ivashkov said. "How about a nice pair of earrings?"

"My ears aren't pierced," Violet said. "But thank you."

Lady Ivashkov paused, then took the pink hibiscus from behind her own ear. "How about this flower, then," she said. "Do you like flowers, Violet?"

"Yes," Violet said, uncertain.

"This would look pretty on you," Lady Ivashkov said. She tucked the flower behind Violet's ear, then pulled a bobby pin from her own perfectly styled hair and used it to secure the flower in place. "There," she said. "You look perfect."

"Thanks," Violet said. "I'd give you a flower, too. But I don't have any right now."

"Oh, you're sweet," Lady Ivashkov said. "I hope we can get to be friends."

"Maybe," Violet said, and gave a tentative smile.

Lady Ivashkov straightened up, then turned to Amy, who, along with all the other adults on the porch, had been watching this whole scene uncertainly. "I guess you don't like jewelry either, Amaryllis?" Lady Ivashkov asked, and Amy shook her head 'no.' "I had so wanted to give each of you a present, but now I'm out of flowers," Lady Ivashkov said.

"It's ok," Amy said. "You can get me one later."

"It's a deal," Lady Ivashkov said. She offered Amy her hand to shake, and Amy shook it uncertainly.

"I hope you don't expect me to call you Grandma," Amy said, a little scornfully.

Lady Ivashkov laughed. "Oh, for heaven's sake, please _don't_," she said. "Please, both of you, call me Daniella. That's my name."

Amy nodded. "Ok. And you can call me Amy, not Amaryllis. No one calls me Amaryllis."

"I know that people usually call you Amy," Lady Ivashkov said. "I just thought I'd call you Amaryllis because it's such a pretty name. I mean, if that's alright with you."

Amy shrugged. "I guess you can call me Amaryllis," she said. "And um, thank you for thinking my name is pretty."

"Of course," Lady Ivashkov said. "Because it _is_ pretty! Well, I'm so glad we have this all straightened out." She turned her head to the side, examining Amy's face. "I see a lot of my son in you," she said. "But I also see that you're your own person, aren't you?"

"Yes," Amy said.

Violet whispered something, and Amy and Lady Ivashkov both laughed.

"Well, yes, I guess we can't share," Lady Ivashkov said. "How clever of you." She straightened up. "Well, I'm just _starving_! The meal on the plane was almost _inedible_, but what can you expect in business class these days? Sydney, what can I do to help get dinner on the table?"

"Oh, Carly and I can do that," Joanne said, standing up. "Sydney shouldn't be on her feet too much."

"Oh, Joanne," I said. "That would be great, if you and Carly want to help. There's some take-out on a table by the door, if you could just bring it out here..."

"Why shouldn't she be on her feet?" Lady Ivashkov asked, concerned. "Sydney, are you unwell?"

"I'm fine," I said, sitting down on one of the padded deck chairs. "I'm just expecting, so I get tired easily. Girls, do you want to help Aunt Carly and Joanne?"

"Expecting?" Lady Ivashkov repeated, a little louder than necessary.

"That means pregnant," Violet offered, as she and Amy got up from the table. "There's a baby in her stomach right now, only it's not really her stomach, it's in another place, called a you-to-us."

"Expecting," Lady Ivashkov said again. "A baby? That's... that's wonderful, Sydney. I couldn't be happier." She put a hand on my shoulder, and I gave her a smile. "Do you know yet if it's a boy or a girl?"

"We don't know yet," Violet said. "But Amy and I hope it will be a girl so we can brush her hair and teach her how to do karate."

None of us laughed at Violet's innocent little comment, because Violet hated to be laughed at, but most of the adults caught each other's eyes and smiled. Her comment seemed to lighten the mood on the porch, and I was glad about that.

"Good answer," Carly said, giving Violet a squeeze. Then she addressed Adrian's mother. "Mrs. Ivashkov, I'm Carly Sage. I'm Sydney's sister." They shook hands. "And this is my girlfriend, Joanne."

"Hi," Joanne said, holding out her hand.

"Oh," Lady Ivashkov said. She paused for a split-second, then offered her hand. "Nice to meet both of you," she said. "And please, call me Daniella."

"Daniella," Carly said. "Great. And do you know Jill and Eddie?"

"Yes," Lady Ivashkov said. "Hi, you two. Long time no see."

"Hi, Lady – Daniella," Jill said. "Nice to see you."

"We'll _have_ to catch up, darling," Lady Ivashkov said. "You're looking quite well. So much better than the last time I saw you."

"You too," Jill said.

"Hello, Daniella," Eddie said.

"Edison," she said. "Good to know we have a guardian in our midst, just in case."

"A guardian?" Joanne repeated, confused. "What kind of guardian are you, Eddie?"

"Oh, that's just an old personal joke," Eddie said, smoothly.

Joanne nodded, satisfied with that explanation, and she and Carly went back into the house with my daughters and Lady Ivashkov trailing behind them.

"Omigod," Jill said, once the door had closed. "What was _that_?"

_A/N: Hope you liked my take on Daniella... She was tough to write! But I just kept remembering her telling Rose to "not hurt Adrian too badly" when their relationship ended, and kind of went from there. Anyway, this was another chapter that was getting to be about 12,000 words or so, so I cut it off here and will put the rest into chapter 30. Ok, new estimate... 40 total chapters! (insane maniacal mad scientist type laughter)_


	30. I'm Getting Married Tomorrow

**Chapter 30: I'm Getting Married Tomorrow**

"That was Daniella Ivashkov trying not to alienate the only family she has left," I said.

"The jewelry thing?" Jill said. "Like, doesn't she know her son has more money than God, too? And you have plenty of money, too. As if the girls want for anything! Or could be bought for the price of a diamond bracelet!"

"She was trying," I said. "That's a good start. She just... doesn't really know how to deal with people, I guess."

"What was her problem in the first place?" Eddie asked. "Does she think you're not good enough for her son or something? Because... no. Seriously."

"It wasn't quite that," I said, smiling at his implied compliment. "But she definitely had the wrong idea about me and Adrian. She thought that... I guess you could say that she thought that I didn't really love him."

"If you didn't love him, then why would you be marrying him?" Jill asked. "_Really_!"

I shrugged. "I guess from her point of view, it was logical to assume what she assumed," I said.

"So what are you going to do about it?" Jill asked.

"Nothing," I said. "She apologized. End of story."

"Really?" Jill said.

"Really," I replied. "I don't want to have an antagonistic relationship with my mother-in-law, so yeah, I'm going to drop it. For one thing, it's hard on Adrian if we're fighting. For another, I think she did mean it when she apologized. And besides, it's just kind of... embarrassing. I feel like the human race should have evolved past that kind of thing by now." I paused, then added, "And, I mean, the Moroi and dhampir races, too..."

"The Moroi world _is_ evolving," Eddie said. "Just kind of... slowly."

"Too slowly for my taste," Jill said, standing up. "But whatever, can't do anything about it right now. And I feel guilty we're not helping get dinner ready. I'm going to get us all some drinks. Red wine ok, Edsie?"

"You know me well," he answered.

"And you, Syd?"

"Diet Coke," I said. "Or iced tea. Or something with at least a little caffeine in it."

"Gotcha," she said, and went inside.

For a moment, Eddie and I sat in comfortable silence, listening to the frogs. Then Eddie asked, "So where's Adrian?"

"He's resting for a moment," I said. "I think dealing with his mother stressed him out."

"He... ok?" Eddie asked, in a low voice.

I shook my head. "I don't think so," I whispered.

"What are we going to do?" Eddie asked.

For a moment, I was reminded of the old days, back in Palm Springs, when we'd all had to deal with Adrian's spirit darkness on a fairly regular basis. Back then, we'd mostly just kept track of him and brought him hangover remedies. "Lately, he goes for a swim to release the tension," I said, looking out over the water. "He swims until he's exhausted. He says it empties him out..."

"Should he go in now?" Eddie asked. "_After_ dinner isn't the best time for a swim."

"Maybe, but he's hungry now," I said. "He won't want to wait."

"Who won't want to wait for what?" a voice said from the darkness. It was Adrian, walking along the pathway that led around to the front of the house. He must have gone around the house from the front, maybe to avoid the busy, crowded kitchen.

"You," I said. "I know you're hungry."

"Damn right I am," he said, giving me a quick kiss. "Hey, Castile," he added, and Eddie stood up for a moment to give Adrian one of those one-armed hugs guys give each other. "How was your flight?" Adrian asked. "Glad to see you got here in one piece."

"Flight was fine," Eddie said. "And it's great to be here."

"What's not to like?" Adrian said. "We've got a full house, a great view..." He trailed off, probably looking at the ocean that the darkness hid from my human eyes. "And," he added, "we've got a bunch of noisy frogs, oh my god, frogs, _why won't you shut up for a minute_?" The last few words were delivered at a near yell towards the darkness beyond the porch. Eddie and I glanced at each other and then looked away. "What?" Adrian said, noticing our expressions. "Am I weirding you guys out? I'm just not in a great mood, ok?" He reached for one of the half-full glasses of wine that Carly and Joanne had left on the table and drank the rest of it in a single gulp.

"Adrian," I said, taking his hand. "Come on, sit down next to me. Let's talk a minute."

As he sat down, Carly and Joanne came out, their hands full of plates, silverware, and cups.

"How's it going?" I asked.

"We're getting there," Carly said, depositing her burden on the table.

"Daniella wants to put everything in serving dishes," Joanne said. "Heaven help us!"

"Sounds delightful," Adrian said, sarcastically.

"You know it," Joanne replied dryly. "Alright, back out again in a bit..."

"I'll go see if I can help, too," Eddie said, and followed them as they went back inside.

"He's avoiding me," Adrian said. "Am I radioactive?"

"Do you see me running?" I asked, gently.

"No," he said, smiling a little. "You don't run from me anymore."

"I'm not going to leave you," I said, taking his hand. "But I am a little worried about you. Is this... bad mood... spirit, do you think?"

"I don't know what it is," he answered. "I just feel sort of shitty. Why do I feel shitty? I'm marrying you tomorrow. I should be... on cloud nine. I mean, in some ways I am but..." He trailed off.

"Don't mind me," came Jill's chipper voice from the doorway. She came out with two bottles of wine and a few wine glasses.

"There's room right here," I said, gesturing, and she put the bottles and glasses down on the table and went back inside.

"Maybe right now isn't the right moment to talk," I said to Adrian in a low voice once she was gone. "But Adrian, whatever it is – we'll figure it out, ok? Just... you're not having second thoughts, are you?"

He looked at me, surprised. "_Fuck_ no," he said. "Oh, no, no, no way. You're stuck with me. Unless you're thinking of changing your mind... Please tell me you're not going to change your mind?"

"I'm not going to change my mind," I said, taking his hand and putting it on my belly. I knew that it wasn't noticeably much bigger than usual yet, but it still meant something. "We made this decision together – for once. We're in this for the long haul."

"Right," he said. He smiled dreamily. "I wonder if I'll be able to see her aura before she's born. I guess I'll have to wait until she's at least six months along for that..."

"You think it's a girl?" I asked.

He laughed a little. "I guess I just assumed," he said. "My whole life is girls. But a boy would be cool, too. Someone I can teach how to shave... Someone to teach my killer moves to..."

"You can't teach killer moves to a girl?" I asked, smiling.

"Our girls don't even need killer moves," he said. "All they have to do is walk into a room and the guys will be offering to jump in front of traffic for them." He smiled, gazing into the distance. "Traffic," he murmured. "All those cars... All different colors..."

"Adrian," I said, trying to get his attention again. "Love?"

He looked up at me, confused. "Sorry," he said. "I don't know what I was thinking about. What's wrong with me tonight?" He got out of his chair and began pacing around.

"Nothing," I said. "At least, nothing that's your fault."

"That's what people always say, but they give up on me in the end, anyway," he said.

"I'm not giving up on you," I said.

"You did once before," he said.

"That was a mistake," I said. "I'll never do it again."

He came to my side and knelt down next to me, putting his head down on my lap. "I hate being like this," he whispered.

I stroked his hair for a moment. "I know," I said. "But you're doing so well. I know how hard you fight. I'm always impressed by that. And it's ok if, sometimes, you're too tired to fight. That's when I'll be here to help."

"I..." he whispered, but then we both turned our heads, distracted by the sound of the door opening. Violet and Amy emerged from the house, arms full of serving dishes. They were looking at Adrian and me with concern and confusion.

"Come on over, girls," I said, in a cheerful tone, and Adrian stood up quickly, a somewhat artificial smile on his face.

"Let's set the table, girls," he said, taking a few dishes from Violet's outstretched hands. "We have the plates and stuff out here already."

Violet put down her dishes, then put her arms around Adrian's waist. Amy followed suit.

"What's this?" Adrian asked, with a little laugh.

"We love you," Violet said.

"Well, I love you two, too," Adrian said. "Thanks. I needed a hug."

"Well, duh," Amy said.

For a few moments they just stood there, the two little girls hugging Adrian with all their might. Then Adrian laughed again. "Thanks, girls. You two are the best."

"Obviously," Amy said, as they pulled apart. Then she began matter-of-factly distributing forks and knives around the table.

"I'll do the napkins," Violet said, brightly. "I learned how to fold them at school."

While the girls began setting the table, I pulled Adrian aside and murmured, "Will you be ok for dinner?"

"I think so," he whispered.

"If you can't, it's ok," I said. "Do what you have to do. We're your family and friends. We'll all understand."

"Mom won't," he said, very softly.

"I'll make her understand," I said.

He smiled. "You fight back plenty," he said, and kissed my cheek.

"When I have to, I do," I said.

He nodded. "I think I'll be ok," he said.

I gave him a tight hug. Then we joined the girls in setting the table.

Over the next few minutes, everyone else came back out of the house, bringing with them more plates of food, some serving implements, condiments, napkins, soda bottles, and the like. Once everything was ready, we all sat down to eat, and I suggested that we all hold hands to say grace first. Even Eddie, who as far as I knew, wasn't religious in the slightest, agreed to hold hands, and we formed an unbroken chain around the table.

"Let's just all thank God for the things we're thankful for," I said, and we all bowed our heads, listening to the ocean and the frogs. I thought about my family, my friends, my health, my life, and my baby. I looked over at Adrian and saw him deep in thought, and I hoped that he was finding plenty of things to be thankful for. And then, after a minute, we said "Amen" and let go of each other's hands. It was time to dig in to the delicious food.

Adrian had used his wiles to get one of the finest restaurants in Kona to prepare some dishes for us, even though they didn't usually provide take-out service. Their specialty was gourmet Japanese-Hawaiian fusion – not an unusual combination on the islands – and it was delicious. We feasted on teriyaki roasted pork, marinated pineapple, fresh sushi, plump dumplings, lightly battered fried ahi, and a side dish of rice with gravy and a fried egg.

Throughout the meal, Adrian was quiet, commenting only when directly addressed. From time to time he ate with his left hand so he could use his right to hold on to my knee, under the table. I placed my hand over his, wishing I could absorb a little of his darkness for him, wishing I could lend him a little of my strength, as he'd done so often for me.

Daniella – and I decided to call her that, since it meant so much to her – made no more insulting or presumptive comments throughout dinner. She asked both girls questions about their interests and hobbies, and answered some of their questions about her own life. She surprised a lot of us when she mentioned that she'd taken up ballroom dancing, but the more she spoke of it, the more it made sense to me. I could picture her, elegant and refined, foxtrotting her way across a sparkling dance floor. As the meal progressed, the girls seemed to warm up to her a little, and I felt myself warming up to her, as well. It was hard not to feel at least _some_ affection for someone who reminded me so much, at times, of two of the people I loved most on the earth.

When dinner was over, we all cleaned up quickly, then came back out to the porch to chat and nibble on some sliced fruit. Amy, excited to be around so many people, got out her tricorder and showed Joanne and Eddie how it worked. Violet, exhausted from the time difference and a long, busy day, climbed into Adrian's lap, curled up into a ball, and fell asleep. And Jill, Carly, Daniella and I talked about the specific schedule of events for the next day, while Adrian sat near us, listening to our conversation and putting in a few words here and there.

After a while, Eddie and Jill went off together for a walk – or so they said – and shortly thereafter, Joanne and Carly did the same. Amy began talking enthusiastically about karate with her new-found grandmother, while I sat by Adrian, holding his hand. His other arm was wrapped tightly around Violet, almost as if she were his teddy-bear. I wondered how I could help him most – and if I could help him at all. Then I noticed that Violet was starting to move around a little in her sleep, as if she were having a bad dream.

"Adrian," I said, softly. "I think we should wake Violet up."

I saw his eyes grow unfocused as he looked at her aura, and then he began to shake her gently. "Miss Purple?" he said, in a gentle voice. "Sweetheart, wake up. You're having a bad dream."

Violet woke with a start, tears in her eyes. It took her moment to wake her up fully, and even when she had really come back to us, she was still frightened and confused. "It was so scary," she said. "It was all dark and mushy and nothing made sense and everyone was mad at me..."

"Just a dream, baby," I said, and pulled her over to me. "Just a dream."

"I couldn't think about anything," Violet said. "It was only dark and scary and nothing mattered."

"That sounds like a very scary dream," Daniella said, from the other side of the table. "You know, Adrian used to have a lot of bad dreams when he was younger, too."

"Did you really?" Violet asked him.

"Yes," Adrian said. "All the time. I still do, sometimes."

"So we figured out a way to make the bad dream go away," Daniella said, standing up. "Let me show you the trick. Come on, stand up with me, ok? Amaryllis, want to join us?"

"Sure," Amy said, and the three of them formed a line.

"Ok, first, you turn around in a circle once," Daniella said, and they each turned in a circle. "Then touch your nose... good... and jump up and down three times and say, 'Bad dream go away!'"

"Bad dream go away!" Violet and Amy chanted.

"Good!" Daniella said. "Now, that usually works. But if you have a really bad dream, sometimes you have to do it twice."

Violet repeated all the prescribed steps, then stopped to consider. "Yes, I feel better," she said. "That's a good trick, Miss Daniella."

"You don't have to say Miss..." Daniella said, but Adrian cut her off.

"That's a losing battle, Mom," he said, with a slight smile. "It's going to be Miss Daniella no matter what you do. It's a losing battle... Like everything is a losing battle..." He stared off at the ocean.

"Girls," I said. "Why don't you give Adrian a hug and a kiss goodnight, and then go inside and get ready for bed? I'll come in to see you in a little while."

They groaned at the mention of the word 'bed', but didn't put much energy into it. They were both tired after such a long day, and they knew that they had already stayed up past their usual bedtimes.

"I can go with you," Daniella offered them, as they each gave Adrian an affectionate good-night hug. "Maybe one of you two girls can show me which room is mine."

I realized that, in all the arguing, we'd never gotten her settled in a room, and I felt a little bad about that. But before I could speak, Amy piped up.

"I know which one it is," she said. "I'll show you, um, Daniella."

"Thank you, Amaryllis," Daniella said. "Violet, are you coming too?"

Violet nodded, and the three of them went inside, Violet looking at me once over her shoulder. I gave her the thumbs up and she nodded.

Once Adrian and I were alone, he looked at me, and I got up and sat down in his lap, sideways, so that I could look at him from the side. He rubbed his cheek against mine, softly.

"I love you," I said.

"Me you too," he said.

"Do you want to go for a swim?" I asked, very gently.

He was silent for a moment, then said, "What if it doesn't work, Sydney?"

"It usually does," I said. "But what other things have helped you, in the past?"

He thought a little. "Massive quantities of booze, I guess, though I don't do that now. Locking myself in my room and not speaking to anyone for a week. Not really an option right now. When things get really bad, I guess I sometimes go see Sonya or Lissa for a healing. Also not an option right now."

"If it doesn't work, we'll come up with a plan B," I said. "That's what we do. But we might as well try Plan A, first, right?"

He squeezed me tightly. "In a moment," he whispered, and kissed me.

We were still kissing a few minutes later when the sound of someone clearing her throat behind us made us turn around.

"Do so hate to interrupt," Daniella said. "But I was wondering where there were some extra towels?"

"Linen closet," I said. "Near the stairs on the second floor."

"Great," Daniella said. "Well, get back to it, then."

"It's ok," Adrian said. "I was just about to go for a swim, anyway." I got up from his lap so that he could stand up too.

"A swim?" Daniella said. "Really? Is that safe?"

"This is a pretty sheltered little cove," I said. "There are hardly any waves right here. And it's not like Adrian can't see..."

"True, I guess," Daniella said. "But still... all the fish and the... other creatures..." She shuddered.

"I need a swim," Adrian said, bluntly. He gave me a kiss on the cheek. "I'll see you in about an hour."

"Bye for now," I said, smiling to hide my anxiety, then grabbed a beach towel to drape over his arm. He gave me a smile of thanks then set off down the stairs to the beach.

"Goodness," Daniella said. "What is going on with him?"

"He's found that swimming helps with his spirit darkness," I said.

She frowned. "Don't see why it would," she said. "Spirit darkness is just mental. I wish he'd stop blaming everything on it, but you know Adrian." She sighed.

"I do know Adrian," I said. "And considering the mental illness rates in spirit users, it seems pretty clear that just because something is 'in your mind,' that doesn't make it irrelevant."

"I didn't mean that it was irrelevant," she said. "I just meant that Adrian blames things on it."

"What a weirdo," I said, smiling widely as my irritation grew. "Like those wacky diabetics who insist on using insulin. Don't know why they don't just get it together and fix their sugar regulation processes."

"Sydney," Daniella said. "That's not fair..."

"Exactly," I said. "You're not being fair to Adrian. There is something actually wrong with him, something real, and you either write him off for it, or laugh at him for it."

"I'm not laughing," Daniella said, clearly offended.

" 'That's Adrian for you,' " I said, in an imitation of her voice. " 'You know Adrian and his _moooooods_.' "

Daniella looked at me, a spark of anger in her eyes. "No reason to mock me," she said.

"No reason to mock Adrian, either," I said. "If you love him as much as you say you do, then you should support him when he does something healthy to make himself feel better, and help him when he needs help – and don't just write him off or disregard his decisions."

Daniella scrutinized me for a long moment, then said, "I'm going to go read in my room for a while. I don't want to argue with you on the night before your wedding."

"Fine by me," I said. "Are you going to go to sleep now?"

"Well, it is nearly 3 am back home," she said. "I usually go to sleep around 7 am, but I might be able to fall asleep now if I try."

"Well, you can sleep until noon or 1 if you need to," I said. "The ceremony is at sunset."

She nodded. "Thanks," she said. "And um, I should thank you for your kindness to me earlier."

"No problem," I said, and she nodded again.

We said goodnight, and then she went inside. I sat for a few minutes, peering out into the darkness, trying to see Adrian swimming. But even when I turned off the bright porch lights, it was hard to see any more than just an occasional flash of movement. I finally went inside to put the girls to bed.

Violet was already asleep in bed with the lights on, Elephanty tucked under one arm. There was a book by her side, and she had stuck one finger between the pages to keep her spot. The flower that Daniella had put behind her ear was now sitting in a small paper cup of water on her bedside table. I took the book from her, finding a bookmark to keep her place. Then I turned on the nightlight, gave her a kiss, and turned out the main lights. She didn't even roll over. I watched her sleeping for a moment, wanting to make sure that her bad dream wasn't making a repeat performance, but her sleeping expression was content, so I gave her one last kiss and went down the hall to the room Amy had chosen.

She was reading, but put her book down when I came in.

"Hi, Mom," she said. She sounded tired. Even her dhampir hardiness wasn't quite enough to overcome a full day of sun, swimming, and sand.

I smoothed her blanket down over her and put her book on her nightstand for her. "Hi, sweetheart," I said. "Ready to go to sleep?"

"I guess so," she said, and yawned. "But I'm too excited for tomorrow to sleep."

"You're excited?" I said smiling. "Me too."

"We're finally going to be an official family," she said.

"I think we were before," I said.

She nodded. "I know," she said. "But still."

"Yeah," I said.

"Is Dad... um... ok?" she asked, hesitantly.

"He's not feeling so great," I said. "But he'll be fine."

"Maybe I'll make him a card," Amy said. "Or draw him a picture."

"I bet he'd like that," I said. "But in the morning, ok?"

"_Fine_," she said, and stuck out her tongue at me.

I stuck mine out back at her and she laughed. Then I gave her a hug and a kiss and turned out her light for her. I waited outside in the hall for a minute, and then saw the faint light of her flashlight coming from under the door, reflecting off the hardwood floor. "Go to actual sleep," I said, not opening the door. "The kind with your eyes closed. The kind where you're not reading."

I heard her groaning, but the bit of light I could see flicked off.

"Thank you," I said. "I love you!"

"Meh," she called back.

I took a few minutes to move through the house, straightening things up, and finding Adrian's bathrobe and some towels. I grabbed a book and picked a bit at the leftover food, which tasted fine straight out of the fridge. Who would have thought that cold rice, gravy, and marinated pineapples would taste so good? Finally, once I judged that Adrian had been swimming for almost an hour, I went down to the beach.

I found his clothes on one of the beach chairs, and sat down on the other one next to it to wait for him. I didn't have to wait long. Soon he swam back to the shore and made his way up the beach to me. As he came closer, I realized that he was naked, and I reminded myself to stay calm. I stood up to give him a hug, focusing as best I could on his mental state. I couldn't let myself get distracted by his naked... wet... body... . He needed me right now, I told myself. Mind, not body. Mind, not body.

"Sage," he sighed, as we pulled away.

"Hi," I said. I wrapped his bathrobe around his shoulders and he put it on, winking at me first. "I think there's a rule that the bride isn't supposed to see the groom naked on the night before the wedding," I said, smiling.

"Fuck that," Adrian said. He gave me a long, soft kiss that made me forget what I had been about to say.

When we pulled apart, I just stared at him goofily for a moment or two. Then I shook it off. "Are you feeling better?" I asked.

"Much," he said. "But I'm exhausted. Those stairs are not looking too inviting right now."

"Let's sit a minute," I suggested, gesturing to the beach chairs. He nodded, waiting for me to sit down first, and when I did, he sat down on the same chair with me, nearly knocking it over. After a bit of scootching around and giggling, we managed to get ourselves curled up together on the beach chair, with Adrian's wet, salty hair dripping all over me.

"Was it a good swim?" I asked.

"Great," he said. "Swimming in the ocean is even better than the pool. I don't know, it feels more... real. Like, a good way to reconnect with something." He paused. "I don't really know what that means."

"It's ok," I said. "I think I get it." We all found God in different places, and in different names. Adrian wasn't particularly religious, I knew, but that didn't mean he didn't feel the awe at God's creation. "Was the water cold?"

"No," he said. "Well, maybe it would have been, but I was using a trick Christian showed me to create a bubble of warmth around me."

"With fire magic?"

"Yeah," he said. He paused, concentrating, then I noticed that the cool night air around us was beginning to warm up a little. "See? It's not really that hard. A lot easier than actually creating fire."

"That's amazing," I said, giving him a kiss. "You're amazing."

"I know," he said, absently, then rubbed his nose against mine. "Your nose is cold," he added, and put his fingers on the tip of my nose. "I'll warm it up."

I giggled. "I'm fine," I protested.

"You're cold," he said, laughing. His fingertips were really warm, and I realized he was using more fire magic.

"I feel ridiculous," I said, but couldn't help giggling again. I moved around, but he kept his fingers on my nose. We were both laughing now.

"See?" he said. "Now your nose isn't cold anymore." And he took his fingers away.

"Thanks," I said. We snuggled back up again, and then I asked, "Did you have to use a lot of fire magic to stay warm?"

"A bit," he said. "I guess that's a good thing. Somehow, using fire magic helps clear up spirit darkness, too. I don't know why."

"Well," I said. "It kind of makes sense. I mean, the way I understand it, Moroi who specialize in the other four elements, they're connecting to nature, right? Whereas spirit users are sort of... using up their own energy. Right?"

"Sounds right."

"So maybe when you connect to the fire energy, you're replenishing yourself, or at least, rubbing out the darkness."

"Hmm," he said. "That actually does make sense."

"I'm pretty sensible," I said.

"One of the many reasons I love you," he said. "You, a human, seem to understand my spirit darkness problems better than most Moroi do." He wiped away a little bit of the seawater that had dripped from his hair onto my cheek. "Does it bug you?" he asked.

"Your hair dripping on me?" I asked. "Not really. I was going to take a shower anyway..."

"No, I meant... me. The whole thing with me being all messed up with spirit."

"It only bugs me on your behalf," I said. "I think it sucks that you have this extra thing to deal with, that other people don't. Extra feelings, extra pain... it doesn't seem fair."

"But it ends up affecting you, too," Adrian said. "Wouldn't you rather be with someone who wasn't all messed up?"

"Who on this earth isn't at least kind of messed up?" I said. "The fact that you have this issue doesn't make you worse, or better, than anyone else. It just means that sometimes, you have to let someone take care of you a little."

"Like you, for example," he said.

"Like me," I said.

"Hmmm," he sighed. I felt his chest vibrating. "I just wish I could be stronger for you girls. The last thing I want is to be... dependent on you. I've been done with that whole 'victim' thing for years."

"There's a difference between being a victim and being... mortal," I said. "It's ok if you need me sometimes. There are lots of times that I need _you_, you know."

He seemed to consider that, then said, "I guess that in some ways it was easier before you girls came. I used to be able to just go hide in my room for a week when it got bad."

"And that's... easier?"

"Easier, yeah," he said. "Not better, mind you. Just easier."

"I guess..." I said, slowly. "I guess it was easier for me before I had Violet and Amy, too. Easier, but not better."

"Right," he said. "Exactly. I wouldn't give you three up for anything. Or number four, either," he added, kissing my cheek. "I don't exactly miss the days when I hid in my room for a week. But..."

"I guess it's hard to go from having no responsibilities to having tons of them, almost overnight," I said.

"Yes," he said.

"Any... regrets?" I asked, tentatively.

"God no," he said. "That's not what I mean. I just mean that... it's scary sometimes. Before, there was no real reason for me to stay sane and healthy except for... myself. Now I have so many other reasons."

"Do it for yourself anyway," I said. "But let us help you. The girls don't mind, and neither do I. I mean... did you miss the part about you being the love of my life?"

He smiled. "No," he said. "I didn't miss that."

He leaned forward and kissed me, and what started as a sweet, contemplative kiss became something a lot more heated, very quickly. We pulled apart and looked at each other for a moment in the moonlight. I saw a smile beginning at the corner of his mouth, and then it spread over both of our faces, like the sun coming out from behind a cloud.

"You know," he murmured. "I'm getting married tomorrow. Tonight is my last night as a single man."

"Really?" I said. "That's such a coincidence. I'm getting married tomorrow too."

"So it's your last night of being a carefree bachelorette," he said, his finger running down in between my cleavage.

"We should take advantage of the situation while we can," I said.

"Just what I was thinking," he said.

I leaned towards him and kissed him, and his hands slid around my waist to untuck my shirt and run lightly over my back. I wondered, vaguely, how long my back had been an erogenous zone.

"Want to go inside now?" I asked.

"Yes," he said, with intensity, then again, "Yes."

We stood up and moved quickly over the sand, up the stairs, inside the house, up the stairs to our master suite, barely saying a word. Adrian went into the bathroom and started the water running in the shower, and I followed him, slipping off my t-shirt and shorts.

"Are your arms too tired to wash your hair?" I asked. "I can do that for you."

"If you do that, I'll owe you a favor," he said.

"Sex is fine," I suggested.

"It's a deal," he said, pulling me closer.

_Quick A/N: _

_I feel the need from time to time to mention that any religion that makes it into this story is there because *Sydney* is religious, not because *I* am. I hope no one feels preached at. It isn't really me doing the preaching, anyway._

_Next chapter: _

_Vows? Unexpected guests? Hmmm... you'll have to wait and see... Unless of course you're reading this after I already posted the next chapter, in which case you just have to click "next" to see._


	31. Ohana

**Chapter 31: Ohana**

"Welcome, friends," said Pastor Cindy. She was a native Hawaiian woman who had agreed to perform the wedding ceremony, knowing that it was not to be legally binding – yet. "We're here today for a wonderful reason."

I looked around me, trying to take in the scene so I'd never, ever forget it. The sun was setting, and the sky was tinged with pink. The wind was blowing gently, bringing with it the scent of the sea, and I could hear the waves lapping at the sand. I was standing barefoot, the sand between my toes, and I was holding Adrian's hand. Our eyes met, and I wondered what was going on in his mind.

Of course, he looked amazing. As far as I was concerned, he always did. Today, in keeping with Hawaiian custom, he wore all white – a white shirt made of rough cotton, the top three buttons undone, and white linen pants rolled up at the cuff. Since the sun was so close to setting, he didn't need a hat or sunglasses. Eddie, the best man, was dressed in similar white pants, with a pale purple shirt. As for me, I wore the dress that Jill and Carly had picked out for me – a strapless white cotton sundress, accented by a wreath of white flowers in my hair. Carly had tied a pale purple ribbon around my waist as a belt, one that perfectly matched the pale purple of Eddie's shirt and Carly's own dress. We were all barefoot, our flip-flops in a pile nearby.

"Why have we gathered?" Pastor Cindy said. "Joy, of course. The unification of a family. And love. Adrian and Sydney are glad that you came here today to celebrate their love, and their family."

I looked out at the small group of people gathered a few feet away. Violet and Amy were in the front of the crowd, dressed in matching white and purple sundresses to indicate their status as flower girls. Joanne was standing behind them, gazing at Carly as if this ceremony was giving her ideas. Daniella was holding a parasol to guard herself from the last few rays of the setting sun, an affectation that Jill seemed to find humorous. In addition to our invited guests, there were also four or five passers-by who had stopped to watch. They seemed genuinely enthusiastic about the wedding, and I found that I didn't really mind their presence.

Pastor Cindy nodded to Violet and Amy, and the girls, excited to do their duty, took several beautiful leis and draped one around the neck of each invited guest – another Hawaiian custom – then took turns giving each other one. Then Adrian and I exchanged leis, as well. Jill, our official photographer, took pictures nearly constantly, and I wondered if she would fill up her entire memory card before we even got to the reception.

"Before the couple exchanges their vows, I'd like to tell you all of a tradition that some say once took place here," the pastor said. She gestured to the mountains behind us. "As you can see, two small, shallow rivers come down from these mountains. As they flow across the plane, they join each other, and then flow to the sea, united. Long ago, when two lovers were ready for marriage, the boy would walk down one river, while the girl walked down the other. When the two streams joined, the lovers would join hands and walk together until they reached the sea. In this way, they were married.

"Sydney and Adrian have already walked through the river of time, sometimes fighting a mighty current, trying to find each other. But now they're together, walking together, living together, their hands joined. And now, their love is as strong as the ocean itself. For thus sayith King David: 'Love is strong, love is strong, love is strong.'"

Adrian squeezed my hand and I met his gaze. It was always dangerous to do that, and now even more so. Looking at him, I felt my eyes filling with tears – tears born from just the sheer overflow of emotions running through me. Looking around, I saw that Daniella and Jill – and even a few of the strangers – were dabbing at their eyes, too.

"And now, the blessing of the rings," the pastor said. She picked up a small wooden bowl, which earlier I had seen her dip into the sea and fill with water. "This bowl is made of blessed koa wood, a symbol of integrity and strength," she said, then held up a large green leaf. "This is a ti leaf, a symbol of prosperity and health." She dipped the leaf into the seawater, then gestured to Eddie, who handed her the rings that he'd been keeping in his pocket. "I bless these rings," she said, then chanted something in Hawaiian while she sprinkled some of the water from the bowl onto the rings. "May your marriage embody all the characteristics of the koa and the ti, and may peace from above rest upon you forever." Then she looked at me kindly and said, "And now, your vows."

Adrian and I had decided that I would go first, so I took a breath and opened my mouth. All my life, I had never suffered from stage fright, nor had I ever hesitated to speak up in class or in front of any other crowd. I had prepared my vow, too – written it out carefully to try to finally say out loud just how much I loved Adrian. I looked at him and he smiled and I tried to speak. But when I opened my mouth, the words I had rehearsed so carefully disappeared from my mind. I told myself to focus on him, to pretend that I was speaking only to _him, _and tried again.

"Adrian," I said. "I love you more than words can say. You're kind and generous and gentle and talented and just... wonderful. Having you in my life has helped make me happier and healthier and more in tune with the world. I promise to be there for you and to love you and honor you, every day, for the rest of our lives."

I knew that as far as wedding vows went, my vow had been disjointed and a little silly, but it didn't seem to matter to him. The look he gave me – so full of happiness and love – nearly knocked me off my feet.

"Sydney," he said, looking into my eyes. I tried to tune everyone else out, to even forget that they were hearing this. "You're the love of my life. Ten years was a long time to wait, but I would wait another ten years to be with you if I had to, because there's no other choice. It has to be you. So if you'll have me as your husband, I promise that I'll love you and cherish you and take care of you. And on top of that, I promise we'll have fun together, for as long as we live."

The pastor gave each of us the other's ring. Then I held out my hand, and Adrian slipped my ring on my finger. Finally, I put his ring on him, my hands shaking a little.

"I now pronounce you married, in the eyes of God and of those who love you," said the pastor.

Then I'm pretty sure she said something else but I wasn't listening. I grabbed Adrian and kissed him, and the cheer from the small gathered crowd drowned out any more of the pastor's words.

When we disengaged again, the pastor gestured to Amy and Violet to come over to us, which they did, almost skipping. The pastor spoke again, sounding almost as happy as I felt. "I now pronounce you ohana – family," she said, then added, "though I can see that you already are one."

"Ohana!" someone shouted. It was one of the friendly strangers, I realized.

"Ohana!" Eddie repeated.

"Ohana!" Jill shouted.

And then everyone watching the wedding began to chant, "Ohana! Ohana! Ohana!" Amy and Violet began jumping up and down and chanting too, and Adrian put his arm around me and kissed my cheek. I looked at him and he grinned and shook his head helplessly. Then he whispered a question to me, and I nodded, smiling.

A few moments later, the chant began to die down. "Now, now, now," Adrian said, making a "quiet down" gesture with his hands. "Thank you for all coming to our wedding, but I think the ceremony part is over. That means the party part is about to begin!"

There were a few ragged cheers from the very small crowd.

"Yes, exactly, woohoo!" Adrian said. "And I would like to say that since we accidentally ordered twice as much food as we needed, you random strangers are welcome to attend our reception, too!"

The strangers clapped and cheered, and Daniella tried desperately to catch Adrian's eye. He just grinned and ignored her obvious discomfort.

"So, if everyone will just start walking, there's a family bar and grill about 15 minutes that-a-way," he said, pointing. "Go on, now, _scoot_. It's time to eat and drink and dance until we fall over!"

The barefoot members of the wedding party retrieved their flip-flops, and the crowd started walking. Eddie put Violet on his shoulders, and Amy walked alongside of him, chattering happily. Adrian slipped the pastor an envelope that I knew contained her fee and a hefty donation for her parish, then we both gave her quick hugs and accepted her blessings. Then we caught up to the group, all of whom wanted to hug and kiss us – even the strangers.

Once the congratulations had died down, Adrian took my hand and we began to walk a little ways behind the rest of the group, who seemed eager to get to the reception area. My stomach was too jumpy to even think about food right now. I just wanted to walk quietly with Adrian along the edge of the beach, where the ocean met the land. For a few moments, we didn't even speak. Then I said, "Well, we did it."

Adrian squeezed my hand. "We did," he said.

"How do you feel?" I asked.

"Maxed out," Adrian said. "This has been a crazy few days. But I'm like... so happy, Sydney."

"Me too," I said.

It _had_ been a crazy few days. A family beach vacation with a sun-shy vampire was a tricky thing to manage. We'd made do with a beach tent and a hat, and actually, Adrian had had a lot of fun, especially on a rainy day when we'd all just gone swimming in the rain. But with the arrival of various family members, and the onset of Adrian's spirit darkness, we were dealing with a lot. At least I knew things would calm down once everyone left. Adrian and I had agreed to switch over to a more vampire-friendly schedule, going on night hikes and night swims. I didn't really care much what we did, as long as we were together. Hawaii was beautiful, but we'd chosen it more for its remote location and for its complete lack of Strigoi than for any other reason.

"You're not mad I invited the randoms to come to our reception, are you?" Adrian asked.

"No," I said. "If I didn't want to invite them, I would have said no when you asked. Besides, we have all that extra food..." Earlier that morning, Adrian had sheepishly admitted that he had accidentally ordered twice as much food as we had originally planned to order – he blamed it on the caterer's confusing website. Now it looked like the food would find a happy home in someone's stomach.

"Exactly," Adrian said. "Besides, it'll make it less obvious that my mom is the only single person here."

"Hmm," I said. "I hadn't even thought of that..."

"Sydney! Adrian!" a voice said, startling both of us. We looked over to see Jill jogging back to us, and waved at her. "Hey," she said, as she approached. "I have to give you your present!"

"It can wait, JB," Adrian said, smiling.

"No, let me give it to you now," Jill said. She opened her purse and took out a small jewelry box, which she handed to Adrian.

Adrian opened the box to reveal an unimpressive silver ring. He looked at her, smiling but confused. "It's um, very nice, Jill..."

"I know, it doesn't look like much," Jill said. "But put it on, ok?"

Adrian slipped it on to one of his fingers, and immediately exhaled in relief. "Oh, wow," he said. "What is _in_ this thing?"

"Water magic," Jill said, happily. "And some spirit healing magic, too. Lissa and I both worked on it. It was Mia's invention, by the way. She makes the rings for me so I can wear them when I'm modeling in the sun, and I make rings for her so she can go wherever she wants, whenever she wants. Because obviously your own magic doesn't work in rings, isn't that annoying? I think it's so annoying but what can you do?"

"Wait," I said. "This ring will protect Adrian from the sun?"

"Yes," Jill said, grinning. "See?" She held out her own hand, where we could see a small silver ring. "This is the one Mia made for me. And as you can see, I'm fine in the sun."

"Because it has water magic in it?" Adrian asked, still clearly surprised by the effects of the ring.

"It creates an invisible band of cool, protective energy around the wearer," Jill said. "And also, Lissa added some spirit to yours, Adrian, just to help you keep any spirit darkness at bay for the next few weeks."

"This is amazing," Adrian said. He gave Jill a tight hug, and she rested her head on his shoulder. "Thank you, Jill. Really."

"You're welcome," she said, hugging him back.

As I watched them embrace, I thought about how much Jill and Adrian had gone through together, and it occurred to me that they might want a moment or two to talk.

"I can walk ahead," I said. "You know, to let you two talk for a minute."

Jill shook her head. "No way, Sydney," she said. "It's your wedding day. I'm not his bond-mate any more. I'm just... his friend."

She looked a little sad when she said that, so I reached over and hugged her tightly too.

"You're _my_ friend, too," I said, and gave her a kiss on the cheek.

She smiled at me with genuine enthusiasm. "Thanks," she said. "Oh, hey, want me to charm something of yours, too?"

"Maybe my bracelet," I said, handing over the silver bracelet Adrian had charmed with a protective spell.

"Ooh," she said. "There's magic in this already. Cool. I'll add some water too it. It should make your honeymoon a lot more comfortable."

"Thanks," I said, touched by her generous offer. "That's much appreciated."

"No problem," she said. "I'm going to go catch up to Eddie. I'll see you guys in a minute, and I'll give this back to you later, 'kay?"

We said quick, temporary goodbyes, then watched as Jill ran up to Eddie and gave Violet a kiss on the cheek. Once Adrian and I were alone again, I asked Adrian if the ring was really working.

"I think so," Adrian said. "I feel a little like... I'm in the shade, or as if someone just splashed cool water on me. It's nice. The sun doesn't bother me at all."

"Then we can do anything we want," I said, as I mentally flipped through the Hawaii tourism info I'd absorbed over the past few days. "We can go hiking, we can swim during the day..."

"I can kiss you in the sunshine," he said, and pulled me to him. We stopped walking for a few minutes so we could put his words into action before the sun went down completely.

* * *

Adrian and I had rented out the back porch area of a small beach restaurant a short distance up the beach from where we'd had the ceremony. The back porch was partially sheltered, a good idea in case of rain, but also had a large section open to the darkening sky. There were cute Christmas tree lights everywhere, many of them shaped like beach themed objects: palm trees, flip-flops, and fish. There were also a few large lit torches marking the corners of the dance floor area, which was really just a section of beach.

When we got there, we found that the caterers had already delivered the large trays of food, and the bar staff had set up a row of chafing dishes with small Sterno flames underneath them. Adrian had really wanted to have a traditional roasted pig on a spit, so that was there too, set up on a special grilling station a few meters away from the porch. It was an enormous amount of food, far more than even twenty people could have eaten, and I was glad that we had invited other people to share in it. There was also a bar set up, with a cheerful looking man in a flower-print shirt ready to pour us any drink we wanted. Jill and Carly were already there, getting glasses of champagne.

Other people were already digging into the buffet, including the strangers Adrian had invited. One of the first things Adrian did after we got there was take down the velvet rope that the bar staff had put up by the entrance to the back porch and declare the reception open to the entire bar. This was met with cheers and whistles, and Adrian gave a little bow.

After that, Adrian and I got food from the buffet, then settled down on the comfortable padded benches with the girls near us. The meal was great, some of the best wedding food I'd ever had. And about every five minutes, someone started tapping on a wine glass, setting off a chain reaction until everyone in the bar was tapping on their glasses, forcing me and Adrian to give each other a quick kiss. Once I even caught Adrian gesturing to a girl at another table to start tapping on her glass, and I hit him gently on the leg. He reached over and kissed me, and everyone applauded.

Once we had all eaten our fill – there was still some food left, despite how much of it we'd shared – the band began playing a few low-key songs. They were a local band with the unlikely name of "Uhura's Phaser" and had a bluesy-rock vibe that I rather liked. Soon, Violet and Amy, bored from all the grownup talk, got up and danced with some of the other kids at the restaurant.

I was wondering when someone was going to bring out the cake when one of the band's singers called for everyone's attention. She was a brunette woman about my age, and so far she'd shown herself to have a smokey, rich voice that didn't seem to match her delicate features.

"I'm Grace, and we're Uhura's Phaser," the singer said. "Thanks for coming to Sydney and Adrian's wedding!"

Everyone cheered and applauded, and the kids jumped up and down.

"It's time for the new couple to have their first dance as husband and wife," Grace said. "Come out onto the dance floor, Sydney and Adrian."

Adrian and I went out onto the dance floor and kicked off our flip-flops while the kids who had been dancing sat down. The band began to play a song that sounded familiar, though it was one I hadn't heard in a while. "What is this?" I asked Adrian. I had left a lot of the planning up to him, knowing that he knew more about parties than I did.

"It's called 'As,'" Adrian said. "It's an old Stevie Wonder song. I picked it out the other day when I was taking a sun break. But they're playing it a bit differently than he did."

"_As around the sun the earth knows she's revolving_," Grace sang. "_And the rosebuds know to bloom in __early May. Just as hate knows love's the cure, you can rest your mind assured_... "

"That I'll be loving you always," I sang. "I know this song," I added. "My mom used to sing it to me when I was little."

"I know," he said. "You mentioned it once. Remember? That day a month or two ago, when we went for a walk and you saw an old car and it reminded you of her?"

"I lucked out when I married you," I said.

"Obviously," he said.

I put my head on his shoulder and we began to dance, revolving slowly on the empty, sandy dance floor. Adrian sang softly in his off-key voice, near my ear. "Just as all is born as new," he sang, "do know what I say is true, that I'll be loving you always."

At first, I was conscious of all the guests watching us as we danced, and I wondered if I looked stupid. But after a while, the only thing that seemed to matter was Adrian's hands on my waist, my arms wrapped around his neck. The band kicked into higher gear, playing a little faster, as the singer ran through the familiar lyrics, promising love that would last forever. And Adrian and I spun and spun...

"_Until the rainbow burns the stars out in the sky, until the ocean covers every mountain high... Until the day is night and night becomes the day, until the trees and seas just up and fly away... Until dear Mother Nature says her work is through, until the day that you are me and I am you..._"

I started to feel almost hypnotized, and gazed into Adrian's green eyes, wondering if there was sense there to be had.

"Until the day that eight times eight times eight is four," he sang to me. "Until the day that is the day that are no more."

I took his face in my hands and kissed him, then pulled away so that I could look into his eyes. Everything else disappeared. It was just me and Adrian, and only the feel of the soft sand under my feet reminded me that we hadn't flown away.

"Sydney?"

I looked around. Eddie and Jill were on the dance floor next to us, and Jill was trying to get my attention. The band was playing a dance song now, and other couples were dancing. I wondered how long the other song had been over.

"Oh, sorry," I said.

"Hmm?" Adrian said, looking around. "What's going on?"

"The song is over," I said.

"Oh, yeah," he said, absently. He gave me a kiss on the cheek. "Who cares?"

I smiled and put my head down on his shoulder, and we went back to dancing together. However, as the song came to an end, a soft hand tapping on my shoulder made me look up again.

"Hi," Daniella said. "Do you think I could cut in?"

"Oh," I said. "Well, sure."

I stepped away and Daniella put one hand on Adrian's shoulder, the other at his waist, and the two began a sort of modified fox-trot around the dance floor. Adrian shot me a helpless look and I smiled. But once I got over the humor of watching Adrian attempt to keep up with his mother's dance steps, I realized that I was now alone on the dance floor. What's more, I was acutely aware that while the groom danced with his mother, the bride should be dancing with her father – at least, according to tradition. I felt a wave of regret wash over me that I couldn't be sharing this day with my father, despite everything that had happened between us over the years.

"Can I have this dance?"

I looked to my left and saw Eddie, his hand held out. I smiled and took his hand, and we began to dance.

"Thanks," I said.

"No problem," he said. "We Melroses have to stick together, right?"

"That's one way to see it," I said.

"And I know that your dad isn't here," Eddie added. "I'm not your dad but I'm sort of like a brother so I figured..." He trailed off.

"I know what you mean," I said. "And it's appreciated."

"Good," he said, and for a minute or two we just danced. Then Eddie said, "You know, I'm really glad that everything worked out so well. I mean, you and Adrian are both so happy looking and... it's nice to see. And from a purely selfish level, I'm glad that you're back in our lives. I've um... missed you."

"I missed you guys, too," I said. "It's one of the things I thought a lot about on that long drive back to Utah, ten years ago."

"Really?" he said.

"I was thinking about how ironic it was that most of the people I cared the most about seemed to be dhampirs and Moroi – the same people that everyone else I'd ever cared about had told me to avoid," I said. "And I remember thinking how messed up it was that running away from Adrian meant running away from you and Jill and even Angeline. But... I was sure that I had to run. So... I ran."

He made a non-committal noise, and we danced on. Then I said, "You know something, Eddie?"

"Hmmm?"

"When I was expecting Amy, there were a few moments when I found myself thinking about all that nonsense I'd been taught about dhampirs. I'd catch myself thinking that my daughter was going to come out... evil."

"Oh," Eddie said, and I felt the muscles tense in his arms.

"No," I said. "Let me finish. And when I thought like that, I... reminded myself about you. You're a dhampir and you're obviously not evil. You're actually a really great person. So... I kind of thought to myself that if my baby turned out at all like you, then... she'd be fine."

Eddie relaxed again, then gave me a bright smile. "Thanks, Sydney," he said. "That's one of the nicest things that anyone ever said to me."

"It's just true," I said.

"Still," he said. "Thanks."

I nodded, and we danced the rest of the song without talking. When the song was over, Jill reclaimed Eddie, and Daniella sat down. Adrian and I joined Amy and Violet, who were still dancing with some of the local kids. Amy's style of dancing consisted mostly of shaking her little butt, and Violet's main techniques were jumping up and down and spinning in circles. We joined them, Adrian shaking his butt and jumping up and down with complete abandon – to the delight of a few female onlookers, who didn't disguise their open admiration of him. I smiled to myself. They could look at him all they wanted, because he was _mine_.

When the next slow song started, Adrian helped Violet rest her feet on his, then began waltzing around with her, to her complete delight. After a minute or so, Amy had her turn, though she said she didn't need to step on his feet. I paused to watch them, thinking that maybe I'd grab my camera.

"Hello, young Sydney!" said a familiar voice behind me, and I nearly jumped out of my skin. I turned around to see, of all people, Abe Mazur.

_A few A/N: _

_Another chapter that got too long and had to be cut in half. There's more wedding fun to come, shortly, I hope!_

_If you're familiar with the word "ohana" from _Lilo and Stitch_, it may or may not surprise you that it really is used in common speech on the Hawaiian islands. :) It surprised me – I thought it was a fake stereotype, like how people think that New Yorkers are rude (we're not at all!). But no, people in Hawaii really do say "ohana" a fair bit, and as I understand it, it means family, as in close family, the people who you're most responsible to (not necessarily extended or distant family). (If you're Hawaiian, feel free to correct me!) _

_If you're wondering, the story the pastor tells in this chapter is not __a real Hawaiian legend. In fact, it's a story that a pastor told at my friend's wedding, based on a Native American legend. But hey... a lot of legends are similar across cultures, so I thought, maybe they'd have a similar legend/tradition in other areas as well. Plus, it was sweet. :)_

_I put up another outtake – I guess you can call it "Chapter 27 3/4" since it takes place in between Chapters 27 and 28 and is mostly about a phone call between Carly and Sydney. It doesn't really reveal anything new but I know some of you like my outtakes so... there it is. :) Again, I don't want to post my tumblr here since my ex reads the site and I'd really rather he doesn't find my tumblr, but if you want to know what it is just PM me and I'll tell you. I also am going to put up a note about Chapter 33 (after I post 33) that is completely optional too but that will also be on my tumblr._

_Finally, you should totally go listen to the old Stevie Wonder song "As." It's kind of cheesy and old fashioned especially at the beginning but listen to the whole thing and you'll start to see how Sydney felt so hypnotized by it. _


	32. On the Dance Floor

**Chapter 32: On the Dance Floor**

"Mr. Mazur?" I said, doubting the evidence of my eyes.

"Yes, it is I," he said. "Could there really be any doubt?" And of course, there couldn't be. The older Moroi gentleman was dressed in his customary blinding colors, though he had chosen Hawaiian style prints for the occasion. The flowers in his lei exactly matched the stripes in his jaunty scarf, and there was a pink hyacinth pinned to his hat. He was flanked by two imposing looking bodyguards, one a Moroi, the other most likely a dhampir. The bodyguards wore gray suits and sunglasses despite the heat and the time of night.

"What on earth are you doing here, sir?" I asked, flummoxed.

"I heard about the wedding from my daughter," he said. "Such joyous news! I had to pay my respects in person!" He looked from left to right surreptitiously, as if checking for spies, then nodded to one of his bodyguards, who slipped me a large blue envelope. "That's for you," he said, in an undertone. "Consider it a wedding gift, young Sydney."

"You came all the way to Hawaii to... give me some papers?" I said. I always felt a little lost trying to talk to Abe Mazur.

"It was no trouble, no trouble at all," he said. "I was nearby Hawaii anyway. In the neighborhood, you see."

"That's impossible," I sputtered. "There's no _neighborhood_. Hawaii isn't near _anything_. It's at least seven hours from _everywhere_!"

Abe shrugged. "I had some business in Fiji," he said.

"Fiji is _also_ seven hours away!" I said.

"Perhaps," he said.

It was maddening, but I made a conscious effort to stay calm. "Well, regardless, it's um, nice to see you, sir," I said.

"It's wonderful to see you, too," he said. "Look at you! Pretty as a picture, as always. I'm so pleased that you've worked things out with Ivashkov. Always knew that you would be doing that. Such a nice couple. Deviant and disgusting, true, but a nice couple. Also, I like deviant, disgusting things!" He laughed as if he had just made a hilarious joke.

"Thanks, I guess," I said. "Um, how's Ms. Hathaway?"

"Janine, you mean?" he asked, grinning widely and showing his fangs.

"Yes," I said.

"She's very well," he said. "What a woman! She's always well. She can go straight from a battle with a Strigoi to a totally different kind of 'battle' with _me_, if you know what I mean, and I think you do." He grinned again and I felt myself coloring a little.

"Um, that's great," I said. "I'm glad you're doing well. So, uh, this envelope – should I open it now?"

"If you like," he said, carelessly. "It's just some information on your ex-husband."

"Information... on Rick? What?"

"You'll be pleased to hear that his engagement has fallen through," he said.

Abe maintained that disconcerting smile of his while I opened the envelope and removed some black and white photographs. They depicted Rick and a young woman I didn't recognize sitting at a table at a sidewalk cafe. The first photo showed the two of them talking intensely. The next photo showed the woman throwing something at him, and in the last photo, she was walking away.

"My... assistants... have informed her of Rick's disgusting treatment of his own daughters," Abe said. "She ended the engagement immediately. See? That's her throwing the engagement ring back in his face. Isn't that delightful?" He nearly clapped his hands with glee.

"Oh, God, why did you do that, Mr. Mazur?" I said.

"Because he's a vile excuse for a man," Abe said. "I couldn't allow him to get away with what he did to you and to your lovely daughters. He was needing some sort of punishment, was my view."

"But he's going to take it out on my family," I said. "Sir, really..."

"No he won't," Abe said, his grin becoming even more dangerous. "I have made that much clear to him. You are not to be touched. Nor are the girls, nor Ivashkov, nor anyone in your family, or anyone else like that. He knows he is holding his life in his own hands."

A shudder ran through me as I thought about the implications of Abe's threat. "Um, thanks," I said. "But I really would have preferred to handle this on my own."

"Don't worry," Abe said, patting my shoulder. "I won't charge you this time. As I said, it's a wedding gift. Now! Will you do me the honor of dancing with me?"

I blinked at him. "Dance? With you?"

"Yes, yes, young Sydney, it's a wedding, people are dancing, you and I could dance, and in fact, I think we should." He offered me his arm, and I took it, feeling bewildered.

Abe Mazur had clearly had some ballroom training, and we box-stepped across the floor together, talking about Rose, Janine, and his grandsons, Cole and Zach. "Ah, wouldn't it be wonderful," he sighed. "Your little Violet could marry one of them. Have some human children. Then I would be a great-grandfather to a human! And you and I would be family!"

"Um," I said again. "I guess so. But that's kind of up to her."

"Of course," he said. "I know better than to try to make a Sage woman do anything. Or should I say Ivashkov, now?"

"We're all going to be Sage-Ivashkovs now," I said.

"I like that. Sounds very imperial. Who knows? Your Amy could be one of the first dhampirs to serve on the council. The Moroi court is considering legislation to give dhampir offspring of Moroi royalty special status. Your Amy could be considered nearly royal."

"I don't think she'll care," I said. "I think she'd rather be President than Queen."

"Such spunk," he said. "You Sage women. Adorable. I like you, young Sydney. I'm glad that you're entering the fold."

"Yeah," I said. "I guess I am too." The song ended, and Abe offered me a stately bow and a kiss on the hand. I curtseyed in return. "Thank you for the dance –"

But a small familiar cry interrupted my courtesies. It was Violet, and she sounded like she was in pain. I looked around, but Abe pointed out the source of the sound before I could locate it myself, and I ran over to the small knot of children on one side of the dance floor. I was vaguely aware of Adrian running over at the same time.

"What's going on here?" Abe Mazur boomed, and the children all stopped short. Abe had strange habits when it came to clothing and demeanor, but somehow even children recognized that this was not a man to be trifled with.

Violet ran over to me and buried her face in my skirt. I stroked her hair and said, "What happened, baby?"

Amy answered for her. "That little boy pulled her hair really hard," she said, pointing out a boy who looked to be about seven years old. From the angry look on Amy's face, I deduced we'd gotten here just in time to prevent more foot-stomping.

"Oh," Abe said, smiling. "That's not a big deal."

"Excuse me," Adrian said. "But that's my kid you're talking about, Zmey. Also, what are you doing at my wedding? I don't remember inviting you."

"I had business in the neighborhood," Abe said.

"_What_ neighborhood?" Adrian muttered, but he apparently didn't expect an answer. He knelt down by Violet's side and said in a gentle voice, "Hey, Miss Purple. What happened?"

Violet whispered her story to Adrian and he listened, nodding occasionally. I couldn't hear her, but I was pretty sure that Amy and Abe could, because they were both clearly listening, too. While Violet continued to talk, a woman came walking over from the bar area, a pleasant smile fixed on her face. The little boy who Amy had pointed out earlier went running over to the woman, and she put an affectionate hand on his shoulder.

"What's going on here?" the woman asked.

"Your son apparently was dancing near my daughter for a while," Adrian said. "Then he pulled her hair hard enough to make her cry."

"Oh, I'm sorry, little girl," the woman said. "But don't be sad. It just means that he likes you."

"But..." Violet said, turning to look at her. "I'm not sad. I'm crying because it hurt, not because I'm sad. I'm not sad, I'm... I'm..." Her little chest heaved, and I saw the color in her cheeks. I knew how she felt.

"You're _angry_," I murmured. Why didn't anyone ever seem to understand the concept of angry tears?

Violet nodded. "Angry," she repeated.

"Well, don't be angry or sad," the woman said. "I'm sorry it hurt, but he didn't mean it. I'm sure he just thinks you're pretty."

I was ready to spit back an angry reply, but I felt Violet drawing in breath, and I wanted to give her a chance to reply. She took a few deep breaths, then said, "But why would he pull my hair if he _likes_ me?"

"It's just what boys do sometimes," the woman said.

"My daddy, my Adrian-daddy I mean, he _loves_ my mommy," Violet said. "He doesn't pull her hair."

Adrian raised an eyebrow at me, and I looked away.

"Well, of course he doesn't," the woman said. "Um... But that's kind of different."

"How is it different?" Adrian interjected.

The woman paused, looking around at me, Adrian, and Abe Mazur. The old Moroi was watching the scene with great interest, and I wondered if the woman sensed that there was something not-quite-human about him. "Well, my son is just a little boy," she said, finally. "He's only seven. He can't control himself."

"And someday he'll be big," Adrian said. "I hope he'll have learned to control himself by then."

"But..." the woman said.

Adrian ignored her and knelt down by the boy, who stared at him with huge eyes. "Hey, little man," he said. "What's your name?"

"Davey."

"My name is Adrian," Adrian said, and they shook hands. "Now, listen up, little man. Someday you're going to be a big man, right?"

The boy nodded.

"And when you're a big man, you want to be a _good_ guy, right? A hero, right? Not the villain."

The boy nodded again.

"Well, the hero doesn't hurt a girl just because he likes her and doesn't know what to say to her," Adrian said, gently. "The hero only hurts people to defend the innocent, right? But if he likes someone, or if he doesn't know someone, he's going to be nice to him or her. Isn't that right?"

The boy nodded once more.

"So, if you want to dance with my daughter, I think you should apologize for pulling her hair and promise not to do that kind of thing again. Then you should ask her really nicely. But she might still say no, you know? Because she might not want to dance with you now that you pulled her hair. That's what happens sometimes if you do a not nice thing. Also, she might not want to dance with you anyway. Sometimes people don't want to dance with people. That's just how it goes sometimes, little man."

The boy nodded as if his neck were on a spring.

"So do you want to apologize?" Adrian asked.

The boy turned to Violet. "Sorry," he said.

"And _why_ are you sorry, young man?" Abe prompted, apparently unable to contain himself.

"Sorry I... pulled her hair," he whispered.

Violet stared at him angrily. "Don't do it again," she said, in the loudest voice I'd ever heard her use in such a public place.

"I won't," the boy whispered.

"Ok," Violet said, relenting a little. She held out her hand to him, and timidly, he shook her hand. She nodded. "Since you're sorry, I'll forgive you," she said.

"Ok," the boy said. "Bye." Then he ran off without another word. His mother cast us all an apologetic sort of smile and followed her son back to the sheltered area.

Adrian turned to Violet. "Good job, Miss Purple!" he said. "That was awesome!"

"Thank you," she said, then threw her arms around him.

"Miss Purple," he said, affectionately. "You're getting so big." He lifted her up and spun her around a little until she started to giggle, then he let her back down again. "And you were right, you know. Boys shouldn't pull your hair just because they like you."

She nodded, smiling. She had heard the three little words everyone so loved to hear: "_You were right._"

"And," Adrian went on. "If any other boy gives you shiii... trouble, then you just tell him to be polite. And if he's not polite, then tell me and I'll _make_ him be polite, ok?"

"Ok," she said, still beaming.

"Good," he said. "Now, let's get back to dancing."

"Ok," she said again.

"Want to join us, Zmey?" Adrian asked.

"Not at the moment," Abe said. "But before I move on I must introduce myself to the valiant Miss Purple." He offered the little girl his hand to shake.

"My real name is Violet," Violet said, quietly.

"Yes, of course," Abe said. "My name is Mr. Mazur. I'm Rose's father. Do you know Rose?"

"Zach's mom," Violet whispered.

"Right," Abe said, smiling. "So I'm Zach's grandfather."

"Oh," Violet said. She paused, then added, "I have a grandfather, too. His name is Jared Sage."

"That's good," Abe said. "Jared Sage is a good name for a grandfather, I always say. In fact, I think I was telling that to my lady recently." Then he turned to Amy, who was peering at him, unafraid. He brightened. "And you, you must be Amy. I've heard a lot about you, too."

"From who?" Amy said.

"From my grandson, Cole," Abe said. "And from my daughter and son-in-law."

"Oh," Amy said. "I never heard anything about you."

Abe laughed. "Probably because mere words cannot describe me," he said. "Or you, I think." He offered her his hand, and she shook it, still peering at him. "Well," he added. "It was an honor meeting both of you lovely young ladies, but I must be getting to that buffet before it's all gone." He offered Violet and Amy each a low bow, then he sauntered over to the buffet as if he had every right to do so, while his bodyguards moved to the corners of the room and assumed a watchful position.

"Who was that?" Amy asked. "I mean... I get it, he's Rose's dad, but... who is he?"

"He's an annoying old gangster with a violet streak," Adrian said, before I could speak.

"He's a powerful person," I added. "It's probably best to be polite around him."

Amy rolled her eyes. "I'm always polite," she said, which was patently untrue, but I let it go.

"Ok," Adrian said. "Seriously, let's get back to dancing and forget about that wedding crasher, ok, girls?" He struck a disco pose. "I've got dance fever!"

"You're silly," Violet said, delighted.

"Yes, I am," Adrian said, proudly, and shook his butt.

The girls giggled, and we all began to dance, laughing and jumping up and down and shimmying around the dance floor for the next few songs. After a while, Davey reappeared with a flower in his hand for Violet. Violet tucked it behind her ear and consented to dance with him, and I watched carefully to ensure that the boy was following Adrian's advice. Sure enough, he was polite to her this time, especially with the eyes of Violet's entire family on him, and I hoped that Adrian's words had really sunk in. At the end of the song, he attempted a prince-like bow and then went back to sit with his family.

Shortly after that, the band launched into a cover of an old Shakira song, one with a tango feel, and moments later, Adrian let out a startled exclamation. I followed his gaze and saw, of all things, Daniella Ivashkov and Abe Mazur dancing what looked to be the Argentine tango.

"Doesn't he hate her for what she did to Rose?" I murmured to Adrian.

"You'd think," Adrian said. "But she's apologized up and down for it, and I guess Abe accepted the apology, even if Rose probably never will. Besides, Abe Mazur can't resist dancing with a beautiful woman, even if he _is_ settled down with Janine these days." We both watched them continue to move slinkily around the floor, as did a few other people, who stopped what they were doing to pay attention to the display.

"Your mom is a good dancer," I commented.

"Yeah," he said, clearly as surprised as I was. "Who knew?"

"And Abe is almost keeping up," I said, watching their flick kicks with a bit of anxiety and hoping that they wouldn't bump shins.

Abe appeared to be leading Daniella, but I knew that she was doing as much to control the dance as he was, dragging one elegant leg behind her like a rudder. They made a nice pair, even if Abe was a little bit outclassed. When the song was over, Abe kissed Daniella's hand and sat down, and a few people let out half-hearted boos, obviously wanting more dancing.

Almost immediately, a man who'd been watching Daniella and Abe intently walked up to the Moroi woman and asked for the next dance. The man looked to be in his late 40s, maybe ten years or so younger than Daniella, and quite good-looking for his age, with dark hair, tanned skin, and very white teeth. Daniella paused, obviously thrown off by the invitation, but finally took his outstretched hand. The band launched into another pop song with a bit of a Latin feel to it, and the couple began to dance.

As it turned out, the man was an excellent dancer, and the entire bar began to watch the two of them dance. Even the kids stopped dancing to watch, their eyes wide, as Daniella and the stranger moved around the dance floor. When the song was over, the man dipped Daniella, then pulled her back up and kissed her. I expected her to slap him in indignation, but she didn't. She actually returned the kiss, then pulled away, her face about as flushed as a Moroi face could get.

Perhaps luckily for her, that's the moment that the staff decided to bring out the cake – a gorgeous coconut macadamia nut concoction with tiny bits of mango and papaya embedded in the fluffy angel food. Following tradition, Adrian and I cut the first piece of cake and fed each other a few bites of it.

"Don't smear any in my face," I warned him.

"I wouldn't dare," he said, then grinned. "But maybe we can take a few pieces home and do some smearing later."

"Maybe," I said, smiling. "I think there'll be plenty left."

"If I get any in your cleavage, I'll just have to clean it off for you," Adrian murmured.

"Hmm," I said, gazing at him. "I guess that sounds fair."

I leaned forward to kiss him, and the crowd cheered again. It was kind of funny how they kept doing that.

"Next you throw the bouquet," Amy called to us, as we began to put cake on plates. "Can I try to catch it, Mom?"

"Sure," I said. "But be fair, ok? It's supposed to be about luck, not... who can jump the highest."

"Fine," Amy said. "I don't want to marry anyone anyway. I just want the bouquet."

Once everyone had had some cake and some coffee - I had decaf, and bitterly wished that pregnancy lasted less than nine months - it was, in fact, time for the bouquet throw. Violet got onto Adrian's shoulders to watch while Carly, Joanne, Daniella, Amy, and a few of the local women gathered in a knot, and I threw my bouquet over my shoulder. A cheer went up almost immediately, and I turned around to see Carly holding up the bouquet triumphantly. After a moment, she gave it to Amy, who ran off grinning, holding the bouquet like a sword. Then Carly grabbed Joanne and kissed her soundly, while a few people cheered.

"I think we know who's next," someone said, and there was a ripple of laughter.

"Maybe," Joanne said, dreamily.

"Maybe," Carly echoed, and they went to the dance floor together, holding hands.

Adrian and I followed suit, as did a few other couples, including Jill and Eddie and Daniella and her human man. When the dance was over, Adrian and I went to sit down for a bit, ready to rest after so much dancing. Adrian was giving me a shoulder rub when Jill came over to sit by us, a proud smile on her face.

"Hey," she said. "I'm done." She held something out to me, and I took it automatically. It was my bracelet, the one I'd handed over to her earlier in the night. The moment I put it on, a lovely cool feeling began to spread over my overheated, exhausted body.

"Oh, wow," I said. "This is nice."

"Wait until you try it in the sun," she said. "The sun feels too hot even for humans sometimes, right? This should help a lot."

"I'm sure it will," I said. "Thanks, Jill. You're the best." I gave her a quick hug, and she smiled and ran off again to rejoin Eddie on the dance floor.

"Does it really help, or were you just being polite?" Adrian asked me in a low tone, when she was out of earshot.

"It's nice," I said. "Relaxing."

"Good," he said, and went back to massaging my back. After a moment, though, he spoke up again. "Did your tattoo protect you from the sun, back when it was... you know... active or whatever?"

I thought about it. "I guess it did," I said. "I never used to get sunburned, anyway. I never used to get colds or papercuts or anything like that. And what injuries I got, I usually healed from really quickly." I sighed. "I guess sometimes I miss my tattoo. I mean, not what it represents, just... what it did."

"Is there... is there any way you could get that protection back?" Adrian asked, tentatively.

I stared at him. "You want me to rejoin the alchemists?" I asked, incredulously.

"No, no, no, of course not," Adrian said. "I just... I... Fuck it, Sage, it doesn't matter. Forget I brought it up." He gave me a smile that entirely failed to convince me of anthing.

"No way, Adrian," I said. "Tell me what's on your mind."

Adrian sighed. "It's not a big thing," he said. "I just was sort of thinking about something weird last night while I was swimming and all weirded out and stuff."

"Which was?" I prompted.

"Moroi lifespans," he said. He frowned. "They're, um, pretty long."

"So?" I said. "That's a good thing."

"Not if... not if I have to go through my last twenty or thirty years without you," Adrian said. I must have looked shocked, because he added, "Now you see why I said to forget it. Seriously. Let's just... drop it."

"But... ." I sputtered. "I don't get the point. What does this have to do with my tatt..." I trailed off because I suddenly saw the connection. One of the gifts of the alchemist tattoo was a long, healthy life. A long healthy life that I could be spending by Adrian's side... . "Oh," I said. "Adrian, obviously, I want to with you for as long as I can be. I would get a similar tattoo if I could, but I don't see how it's possible."

"You don't know how the tattoos work?" Adrian asked. "Like, we couldn't do it ourselves?"

"That's not something they teach in alchemist training," I said. "I know that it involves some Moroi blood and earth and water magic, and that it uses gold to bind it."

"I've got Moroi blood," Adrian said. "And I can get gold. Jill's a water user, and Lissa's been working on her earth skills..."

"But it's not just about that," I said. "There's alchemist technology involved. I know the principles but not the specifics. Only the elders know that."

"Elders like... your father?"

I took in a slow, deep breath. "Yes," I said. "He knows how tattoos work."

"Ok," Adrian said. "And maybe he'd tell you about the tattoo... um, _technology..._ if you said you just wanted to make a protective charm for yourself or the girls, or something."

I shook my head. "I don't think he would tell me under any circumstance," I said. "And I don't want him to start picturing the girls with alchemist tattoos. It's just not an option."

"Oh," Adrian said, a little sadly, then brightened again. "Well, that's ok," he said, gently turning me so that I faced him. "I won't let anything happen to you anyway, tattoo or no. See?" He gestured for me to lift my feet up onto the bench, which I did. He gently massaged each foot with fire-magic-warmed hands, infusing spirit healing into the tired, aching bones. "I'll just keep you healthy... and safe... and happy... for decades and decades and decades to come."

"I really lucked out when I married you," I said, smiling, as he gently replaced my flip-flops.

"Obviously," he said. "Ready to dance?"

"Yes," I said, standing up. And we went back out onto the dance floor.

The rest of the night was fun. Almost all the adults got a little drunk – well, everyone but me and Adrian, who had promised me that he wouldn't drink since I couldn't. Carly and Joanne managed to restrain themselves – maybe they didn't want men staring at them while they were kissing – but Jill and Eddie ended up making out a little on the dance floor, and I had to nudge them to go down to the beach and out of sight.

Daniella danced a few more times with the human man, whose name turned out to be Armando. Towards the end of the night, both disappeared for a while, and when they returned, Armando had a dazed expression and a mysterious mark on his neck. Adrian and I exchanged amazed looks.

"Good to know she still has game," Adrian said.

"I guess," I said, a little uncomfortable. "I hope that the man didn't lose too much blood. It could be dangerous, especially since he's been drinking alcohol."

"I bet she didn't take much," Adrian said. "She saw the feeder this morning, so she probably just took a few sips. My mom wouldn't hurt anyone, don't worry. It's one of the first things you learn as you start to go to feeders – how much to take, how much not to take. Honestly I'm glad that I don't have Moroi kids because it's hard to explain."

"Hmm," I said, not sure what else to say.

"Plus, now I have something to blackmail her with," Adrian added, grinning. "I wonder if Jill got a picture of the two of them dancing."

"I think Violet got a video of it with her ZOMG," I said. Violet carried her small, unfoldable tablet computer with her everywhere she went these days.

"Of course she did," Adrian said, grinning. "That kid is great. I'm going to give her a gold star." He glanced around. "Speaking of... where are the girls right now?"

I gestured to a bench in the corner of the sheltered area, where Violet was sleeping. Amy was sitting nearby, playing with Violet's ZOMG, while Carly and Joanne watched over both girls. "I guess Violet was tired," I said. I glanced at my watch. "11 p.m. here is what, 5 a.m. back home?"

"I think so," Adrian said. "Are you getting tired too?"

"Kind of," I admitted. "Maybe it's getting time to call it a night."

We both glanced back over at the picnic table, where Daniella had sat down to chat with Abe Mazur, while Armando sat by her, one hand on her thigh in a proprietary sort of way. Jill and Eddie had recently staggered back from the beach, hand in hand, looking as if they'd been up to some sort of adult activity, and now they were dancing slowly together at the edge of the dance floor. Most of the other people at the bar were sitting together in small groups, singing along to the band in hoarse, good-natured voices.

"So we'll get the girls and go home, as soon as Carly and Joanne are ready," Adrian said.

I nodded. Carly and Joanne were going to babysit for Amy and Violet tonight while Adrian and I went to our "honeymoon house" just up the road from the house we'd been staying in. "In a few minutes," I said. "Let's have one more dance."

"Absolutely," Adrian said. He offered me his hand, and we went back out onto the nearly deserted dance floor. We wrapped our arms around each other and I put my head on his shoulder, and again we started swaying slowly to the beat. "You know," he added. "I think today was one of my best days. Like, ever."

"Me too," I said. I kissed him, then put my head back down on his shoulder. "Best ever." And we danced the rest of that dance, and the dance after that, and the dance after that, without even noticing that one song had ended and the next song had begun.

_A/N: I know it might seem a little OOC for Daniella to act like this but after a divorce and/or breakup, sometimes people get a little wacky. Besides, I wanted her to have a good night. I hope if I'm single when I'm that age I can pick up hot guys at weddings... . _


	33. The Last Secret

_A/N: A few trigger warnings apply to this chapter. It's not graphic or anything, but it touches on some tough topics associated with abuse and abusive relationships. PM me if you're worried. _

**Chapter 33: The Last Secret**

When the band finally stopped playing and many of the locals began to go home, Adrian and I said goodnight to our guests. We kissed Violet and Amy goodnight and sent them home to the beach house with Carly and Joanne, then got into my Mustang to drive to the smaller house that we were moving into for the honeymoon. We knew the girls would be fine in the big house for the night, with so many of their favorite adults for company, but I still felt a little guilty leaving them alone.

"Maybe we should just stay at the beach house tonight," I said, as we passed it on the way to our honeymoon house. "The girls might miss us."

"We can if you really want to," Adrian said. "But I've been looking forward to getting away from the crowd. Besides, the girls seem fine to me. Judging by their auras, they're just sleepy and happy."

"Good to know," I said.

"And I think it's good for them to be able to get along without us," Adrian said. "They're not going to be children forever."

"True," I said, knowing that he was right, and wishing that he weren't.

"Besides, we're only down the road," Adrian said, and, as if to prove his point, we turned a corner and our little house came into view. "We can get back over there in a matter of minutes if anything goes wrong that Carly, Joanne, Jill, Eddie, and my mom can't handle."

"You make worrying sound so silly," I said. "With all those adults there..."

"I've been telling myself these things all day," Adrian said, with a laugh. "Besides, I got Jill to promise to text me every few hours that everything is ok. She's still having trouble sleeping during the night."

"Cheater," I said, and laughed.

Our honeymoon house was adorable on the outside, and inside, it was beautifully decorated. There were beautiful views from almost every room, and nearly every detail seemed designed to facilitate romance. We made our way through the living room – which, naturally, had a fireplace and a pile of cozy pillows waiting to lounge on – and the small kitchen, already stocked with fresh fruit and pre-made snacks. The curving staircase led up past huge windows to the top floor, where our bedroom was located.

"What a night," Adrian said, as we walked up the stairs. "It was great, but I'm exhausted!"

"Me too," I said, and turned on the light in our little room as we walked in. "Oh, it looks really nice," I said, looking around at the huge windows, the soft white throw rug, and the vases of fresh flowers on nearly every flat surface. There was even a sprinkle of rose petals on the bed, the red dots bright against the fluffy white comforter. The rental-property staff had brought our suitcases all the way to the bedroom, and deposited the flowers, as well as some bottles of water and a few packages of candy, nuts, and dried fruit.

Adrian didn't seem too interested in the room or its contents. He drew me into his arms, making a happy humming sound. "Can you believe we're really married?" he asked me. "It's crazy!"

"We're not legally married," I said, though just a few hours ago I'd been thinking about how our legal status hardly mattered to me.

I felt him shrug. "Married enough," he said, and kissed me on the forehead.

I wiggled out of his embrace, then picked up a bottle of water from the top of a dresser and took a few sips. "I'm so thirsty," I explained, and Adrian nodded.

Adrian settled down on the bed and bounced a few times. "Very comfy," he said.

"Looks it," I said. "Hey, look, there's a hottub in the bathroom!"

"Well, yeah, that's one of the reasons we rented this one," Adrian reminded me. He was watching me with interest, and I wasn't sure what I was supposed to be doing.

"Um, let me change out of this," I said, gesturing to my dress. The strapless bra had been digging into my chest all night and I was ready to be rid of it.

"Be my guest," Adrian said, smiling.

I grabbed something from my suitcase and went into the bathroom. A few moments later I emerged in a rainbow striped night-shirt. It was cute, with spaghetti straps and a shirt-tail hem, but clearly, it was hardly "honeymoon material." Adrian was still sitting on the bed, looking at me. He'd taken off his flipflops, but he was otherwise still dressed.

"Are you ok?" he asked.

"Fine," I said, pulling my lips into a smile. I sat down next to him. "Are you going to sleep in those clothes?"

"Probably not," he said. "Seriously, Sydney, your aura's all over the place all of a sudden. What's going on?"

"I'm fine," I said. "And don't do that aura thing, ok? It's like spying."

"I can't always control it," he said. "But in any case, it wouldn't matter whether or not I was peeking at your aura, because it's all over your face that there's something wrong. What is it?"

"Nothing!" I said, speaking more loudly than I had meant to. "Stop asking, ok?" Adrian winced a little at my tone, and I wondered what was wrong with me. I took a deep breath, then forced myself to take his hand. "Really, Adrian, it's nothing. Um, let's just go to bed, ok?"

Adrian nodded mutely, then stood up and stretched. "We can do that," he said, and casually began stripping down to his boxers. I looked away, getting in under the covers and turning off the light, knowing he'd be able to see fine in the dark. In a moment, Adrian joined me under the covers, and I lay there, feeling terrified for no reason I could articulate.

"Sweetheart," Adrian said. "If I asked you to come closer to me, would you be ok with that?"

"Of course that's ok," I said, forcing cheerfulness. "It is our wedding night."

"You can say no," Adrian said. "You don't have to if you don't want to, for some reason."

"I know," I said, scooting over a little to him. "I want to, really I do."

"Just put your head down here," he said, gently, and I lay my head on his chest, my cheek against his smooth skin. He began to stroke my hair, but it didn't have its normal soothing affect on me. I wondered if he could hear my heart beating, as loud as one of those damn frogs. "I had an idea," he said, after a few moments.

"What's your idea?" I asked.

"What if... what if we don't make love tonight?"

I sat up a little and looked at him in surprise. "But it's our wedding night," I said. "We're supposed to..."

"I've heard that," he said. "I guess it's a tradition, yadda yadda... But sweetheart, I just have a feeling that right now, you don't want to. And if you don't want to, well, I don't want to. It's like I told you the night we got engaged. You never have to do anything you don't want to do. And tonight, especially, I just want you to be happy, and close to me. In that order."

I paused to think about that. "Really?" I said.

"Really," he said. "I think that maybe you think that marriage means something it doesn't. And like, I guess I don't know what marriage means in general, but I know what it means when it's you and me."

"What does it mean?" I asked, softly, then held my breath for his answer.

"It means... happy you, happy me."

That was so different from the definitions of marriage I'd heard my whole life that I let out my held breath in surprise. "Oh," I said.

"Is that so weird?" Adrian said. "I mean... happy Adrian, happy Sydney, happy us. Definitely not... you know... not pushy, mean Adrian, or sad, scared Sydney. Ok?"

"Happy Sydney, happy Adrian," I repeated. I cuddled closer to him, laying my head back down on his chest. "Yes," I said. "That's all I want. But... are _you_ happy?"

"You mean, am I happy even if we don't have sex tonight?"

"Yes," I whispered.

"I'm not going to lie, Sydney. I really, really, really like having sex with you. Like, it's on my top ten list of favorite things ever - right at the top. But there's the word 'with' in that. It's not having sex _at_ you or _towards_ you or _to_ you. It's with you. Don't you remember? The night we got engaged, I told you that if you're not in the mood, neither am I."

"But... this is different," I said.

"Not so different," he said. "And anyway, it's you and it's me and it's all good for now. You can let me know if you feel up to something more, you know? Like, tomorrow or next week or whenever. So let's cuddle up nice and close and listen to the ocean and those crazy frogs and just... fall asleep. "

"That sounds nice," I said, and then, to my mortification, I burst into tears.

"Oh, Sydney," Adrian whispered. He began stroking my hair with a very light touch. "It's ok. Whatever it is, it'll be ok."

"I'm ruining our wedding night," I whispered.

"Impossible," Adrian said.

"I'm crying again," I said. "Why am I always crying? I never used to cry."

"Because you were holding everything in to be strong for Amy and Violet," Adrian said. "At least, that's my guess. And now, you know you're safe to let it out. So... like... that's my job. It's cool, Syd. Get it out."

"Get what out?"

"What you have to say," he said. "Tell me what Rick did to you."

"What... Rick... . But Adrian, I already told you what Rick did. I told you the first day we talked, in that dream..."

"Yes, I know that he used to browbeat you and coerce you into sex. But there's something you haven't told me, I feel sure of it. And I can't help if I don't understand."

"I guess there is something," I said.

Adrian made a soft noise of agreement.

"Ok," I said. "I can tell you." I paused for a few minutes to collect my thoughts, and Adrian waited patiently. Then I said, "Well, let me tell you the story again from the beginning."

"That's a very good place to start," Adrian said.

"You have to know that... that when I married him, I hoped that I'd come to love him, at least a little. I didn't set out to have a horrible marriage, or something like that. Really, I didn't."

"I know that, sweetheart," Adrian said.

"And I felt bad at first that I was making him raise a baby that wasn't his. But I told myself that I would make it up to him in other ways, you know? By being a faithful helpmeet, like they say in old wedding ceremonies."

"Ok," Adrian said, encouraging me to go on.

"I know it was an awful thing to do but..."

"You had reasons," he said.

"But I shouldn't have made Rick deal with problems that rightfully speaking weren't his," I said. "And I felt really guilty about that for a long time."

"I can see that perspective," he said. "But there's a point where you have to forgive yourself. Anyway, it's a privilege to know Amy. He should be thanking his lucky stars, the stupid fuck."

I gave a little mirthless chuckle. "True," I said. "Though I doubt he sees it that way."

"Anyway, go on," Adrian said. "So you were feeling guilty..."

"Well, my point is, that's how our marriage started – with me giving him a lot of the power because I thought that I owed him something. That's important, because... that's how it got the way it did. Maybe if from the start I had felt powerful, if I had established boundaries right from the first day, things would have been different. But I gave up my power and then he took what I gave him and even more and that was that."

"Hmmm," Adrian said, and kissed my forehead. "I understand. It's never good when you give up your power to someone else."

"Right," I said. "And so then when he started in on the insults and stuff... Like, when I started gaining weight towards the end of my pregnancy... I thought maybe it was justified. I thought that at least I could try to look nice for him, since it wasn't even his baby."

"Oh, Sydney," Adrian said. "Didn't it occur to you that he was treating you that way when he didn't even _know_? If that's how he treated you when as far as he knew you were carrying his child... I mean, it doesn't reflect well on him."

"I see that now," I said. "But at the time I was so scared he'd figure it out, and I felt so guilty about lying, and just so... so..."

"So...?"

"So _miserable_," I said. "And then after Amy was born, he seemed happy enough with her, thought she looked like him even, but he refused to do anything like change or feed her, saying that it was 'women's work.'"

"Of course," Adrian said, and sighed. "What a shit."

"And there was something else that was women's work, too," I said, in a small voice.

"Sex," Adrian said, guessing where I was going.

"Yes," I said. "Whenever he wanted it."

Adrian let out a disgusted sigh. "What a jackass," he said. "You told me about this before, but... It's just so shitty. So mindbogglingly shitty."

"Of course, the meaner he got to me, the less I wanted to... do that... but it was almost as if the less I wanted to, the more _he_ wanted to. And if I said no, God help me."

"He didn't hit you, did he?" Adrian asked, a thin but noticeable edge of anger to his voice. "I know I keep asking you that, but..."

"He honestly never laid a hand on me," I said. "I would tell you if he had."

"Would you?" Adrian asked, his voice gentle again. "Sometimes I think you keep things from me."

"I'd tell you," I repeated. "At least now I would. But he never did. In some ways, though, I wish he had."

"What?" Adrian exclaimed.

"I feel like... if he had actually hit me, I would have left him immediately. At the very least, I wouldn't have felt like I was losing my mind. Whenever I tried to explain to people how miserable I was, all my complaints seemed so petty, or like it was all in my head. It's not as if I could tell people about how, if I said no to sex, he'd pretty much make my life a living hell for a week or two." I held up an imaginary telephone. "Hey, Mom," I said into my hand-phone. "You know something interesting? The other night I wasn't in the mood, and just now, Rick accidentally-on-purpose broke that scale model of an antique Studebaker that you got me for my birthday." I put my hand down. "Really, how can you tell people that?"

"Did he really break a valuable antique of yours?" Adrian asked. "A model of a Studebaker?"

"He only broke things that I cared about," I said. "The Studebaker was perfect and accurate to every detail. The little doors opened and closed, and even the engine under the hood was accurate. So, yeah, of course he broke it. He stepped on it and broke the roof in."

Adrian sucked in his breath.

"His favorite thing was to ruin something that was a gift from someone else, someone who loved me. If he had known that the bracelet you got me was a gift from someone, he would have found a way to 'accidentally' drop it down the garbage disposal or something. There's no doubt in my mind."

We were quiet a moment, and then Adrian said, "Well, first off, I am going to replace that Studebaker for you..."

"Oh, you don't have to."

"I want to," Adrian said. "And secondly... is there anything else you want to tell me? Something... else? I feel like there's a piece missing from the puzzle."

There was. It was the thing I had never told a soul. It was something I had barely even allowed myself to think about for a long time.

"Well, um..." I took a gulp of air. "There's something. But maybe it's not important."

"If it's still affecting you, it's important," Adrian said.

"But it's just... awful," I said.

"I can take it," Adrian said. "You're the one who went through it. All I have to do is listen."

I swallowed heavily. "But this um, is something awful about _me_."

"Something awful about you? First off, nothing about you is awful. Second, if anything were awful, I'd love you anyway. So it's ok, Sydney. Tell me."

"It's also something awful about Rick," I said. I was starting to wish I'd just kept control of myself from the beginning. If I had never burst into tears, we wouldn't be talking about this right now.

"I can handle it," Adrian said. "Let me help."

"Ok," I whispered. "Give me a minute."

"Take your time," Adrian said. "I'll be right here."

I took a few minutes to pull myself together and think of the words I wanted to use. Finally, I said, "I never told you how Violet was conceived."

"No," Adrian said, very gently. "You never talk about that."

"It's not... um... good," I said.

"Tell me," he said. "I'll listen."

"You'll think..." I said, and then my voice faltered. "You'll think that I don't love her."

"I know you love her," he said. "That's not up for debate."

"But... originally, I didn't want her," I whispered, then went on in a rush of words: "I mean, once I got used to the idea I couldn't help but love her and want her and especially once I held her, not to mention as she's started to grow into her own little person and she's so wonderful... . But..."

"She wasn't planned," Adrian suggested.

"No," I said, shaking my head. If I was going to talk about this, I didn't want to soften it or lie in any way. "It went beyond that. I actively didn't _want_ to have a baby. After Amy was born, I promised myself that I wouldn't have any more children. I didn't _want_ to have children with Rick." Adrian made a soft noise to let me know he was listening, and I went on. "There's an alchemist compound that you can use as a contraceptive – if you drink it either right before or soon after sex, it prevents fertilization and implantation. So I used to use that whenever Rick and I had sex."

"You mentioned that before," said Adrian, nodding. "I remember. I wanted to ask you at the time why you didn't just use condoms or something, but I didn't want to pry."

"Because Rick wouldn't permit it," I said. "He used to search my purse for pills and things like that. Once he threw away a pack of birth control pills while I was in the middle of a cycle. I couldn't get a replacement for it and I got really sick from having to stop so suddenly with another week of active pills to go. There was no way to replace them without going to the doctor, and he had spies all over town. I just had to suffer."

"The little shit," Adrian said, feelingly. "Go on, Sydney."

"I gave up on the pill, since there was no way to keep it completely hidden from him. And I couldn't tolerate any of the injections, you know, like Depo, things like that. They interacted with my tattoo strangely. So my only option was the alchemist compound."

"I'm glad you could use the alchemist thing then," Adrian said. "So... how did Violet end up on the scene?"

"Well, I was using another alchemist compound back then, too – the one that prevented dreams. I um, I told you about that, right?"

"You did, sweetheart," Adrian said. "I was a little offended at first... but I know why you did it. It's fine."

"Ok, good," I said. "So that stuff, it used to make me sleep really soundly. I'd be out cold for several hours. And um, one morning, I woke up and realized that while I had been asleep, that Rick had..." I swallowed heavily.

"What, sweetheart?"

It took me almost a minute before I could get the next words out, but Adrian waited patiently, still stroking my hair. Then I spoke. "Apparently, he'd... he'd... fucked me while I was sleeping." It was one of the first times in my life that I'd used that word, and though it held the intensity I was looking for, it still didn't quite seem like the right word.

"He did that without your knowledge or consent," Adrian said, in a questioning tone, as if to confirm it.

"Yes," I said. "And by morning, it was too late to use the contraceptive. You have to consume it within 10,000 heartbeats of intercourse – that's usually 2 or 3 hours. It wasn't my most fertile time of the month, so I just told myself that nothing would happen... but something happened."

"Violet," Adrian said, in a low whisper.

"The day I found out I was pregnant, I was heartbroken," I said. "I didn't want anything to tie me to Rick forever. I wondered if I could even love a child that was half his." I swallowed again, then used the sheet to dab at the edge of my eyes. "I told you, I was awful," I said. "I didn't want the baby at all. I didn't want her..."

"It's not awful," Adrian said. "You're not awful. Not wanting to have a baby with a horrible man who abuses you is not awful. Not wanting to have a baby at all isn't awful. _Raping someone_ is awful, Sydney. You're the opposite of awful."

I looked at him in surprise. "Raping someone?" I repeated, numbly. I had never used that word, even to myself. Rick and I had been married. I had been asleep. Did it count as rape? I rolled the idea around in my head.

"I'm sorry," Adrian said. "It's not my place to choose the word. I'm sorry."

"But..." I thought about it. "I didn't want to do it, and he did it anyway, so... That's what it was. It was... rape." There was something oddly satisfying about putting the right word to it. It hurt a little, but it felt good. It was like digging a splinter out from under the skin – a splinter that had been hurting me for years and years. I felt a flood of emotions, but the predominant feeling was _relief_.

"And you're not awful for not wanting to have the baby at first," he said. "She turned out wonderful, but she could have turned out like Voldemort for all you knew."

"I knew she wouldn't," I said, softly. "When I first found out I was pregnant, I left the doctor's office and just started walking. I found myself by the side of the road, looking at a tiny wildflower. It was a violet..."

"Violet told me this story," Adrian said. "How she got her name."

"Right," I said. "At the time, I had this feeling that the flower was a sign. I can't explain it. I just had a feeling that... this baby was for me. Like, that she'd turn out amazing. My little friend. Brave and beautiful."

"Next time you get a sign, you tell me," Adrian said. "Because clearly you know your signs, lady. If we ever go to Vegas, you're picking all our numbers."

I smiled despite the tears that were still trickling down my cheeks. "Well, I did nail that particular prediction," I said.

"I can pick the numbers too," Adrian said, clearly considering his previous comment. "I can read the signs. I had a feeling about _you_, you know."

"Did you?"

"When Rose first told me about you," he said. "I had a feeling you'd turn out to be someone important to me, somehow. I remember feeling really annoyed at Rose for how she'd ended up screwing you over the way she did."

"Rose didn't screw me over," I said. "She was dealing with her own problems."

"And she got you put under house arrest by the alchemists," Adrian said. "Rose had a way of accidentally screwing over all of her friends."

"Maybe," I said. "But so have I, a little. Think about everything I put you through."

"You didn't put me through anything," Adrian said, which was such an obvious lie that I had to laugh. "Now, let's get these tears wiped away... there we are... and let's get a few things straight, gorgeous wife of mine. _You_ aren't awful. Rick is awful. You are a wonderful person and a wonderful mother and a wonderful friend and you're just all around... wonderful. Ok?"

I nodded.

"Rick, on the other hand, is pond scum. He's lower than pond scum. In fact, to say that Rick is pond scum is an insult to pond scum."

I smiled. "True," I said.

"He deserves to have each of his arm hairs tweezed out, one at a time," Adrian said.

"Ouch," I said, with a laugh.

"Or we could knock him out and put a tattoo on his forehead that says 'jackass,'" Adrian said. I smiled, about to add my own potential punishment, but Adrian went on. "Or better yet, a tattoo reading 'Caution: Rapist.'"

"Adrian," I said, tolerantly. "Come on."

"Seriously, Sage, the guy deserves some sort of punishment."

"I know, but it's not for us to dole out punishment," I said.

"It isn't?" Adrian said, with more than edge of cold anger to his voice. "Whose job is it? The police aren't going to do anything about this guy."

"God will," I said. "We all meet our reward or punishment after death."

Adrian sighed. "I wish I had your faith, Sydney. But I want to see him punished here on Earth."

"Shh," I said, soothingly. "It's fine. He's going to miss out on Violet and Amy growing up. That's punishment enough."

"It should be, but he's so dumb that he doesn't even know that," Adrian said. "He should really have a more obvious punishment. Maybe I should... break one of his legs."

"No, Adrian," I said, softly, recognizing the anger rising in him. "Come on, let's not talk about this any more."

As if he hadn't heard me, Adrian said, in a low, raspy whisper, "I should have done that back in North Carolina. Hell, I should have _killed_ him when I had the chance. I could have done it when he was tied to the chair..."

His anger had risen as quickly as a summer thunderstorm forming in the clear blue sky. "Adrian," I murmured. "Let's not talk about this. Let's... talk about something else. We could plan what we're going to do tomorrow..."

"I knew about him coercing you," Adrian went on. "Honestly, that was bad enough. That's almost the same thing as rape. At the very least, I should have had Belikov and Castile hold him while I kicked him in the nuts over and over and over..."

"That would have been fun, probably," I said. "But it wouldn't have solved anything."

"No," Adrian said. "It wouldn't have been enough. It's too good for him."

"Come on," I said, softly. "Adrian, it's a long time ago now."

"When this week is over..." he said. "When this week is over, I'm going to go down to North Carolina and... and... do something to him."

"Adrian..."

"I can see in the dark. He can't. I can sneak up on him."

I took his hands, kissed his knuckles. "Adrian, listen to me."

"I'll get everyone to come with me," he said, warming to his theme. "Castile will go. He loves you like a brother. We'll break in and scare the shit out of that little fucker."

"No," I said, a little more firmly. "Adrian, no."

"I can use compulsion to make his world a living nightmare," Adrian said. "I'll... make it so he sees things that aren't there. Monsters. Giant spiders. Swarms of killer bees, always circling, for the rest of his life. I will use the biggest blast of compulsion I've ever used. I'll bring Sonya and we'll double-team him and make sure every second of the rest of his life is a living hell."

"Don't," I said. The coldness in his voice was starting to scare me. "Adrian? Do you even hear me?"

"As long as I don't kill him via feeding off of him, I won't turn Strigoi," Adrian went on. He seemed to be talking only to himself. "I could just shoot the fucker. But no, shooting him is too quick. I should kidnap him and sell him into slavery or something. No. I'll kidnap him and give him to a handler so he'll live out his life as a feeder in Siberia or something. Let people use _his_ body for once. He was raised among alchemists, right? That would be worse than death for him."

I got out of bed, but Adrian didn't seem to notice.

"Maybe Lissa could pull some strings, get him sent to Tarasov..."

I turned on the big floor lamp, and Adrian let out a startled exclamation at the sudden intrusion of bright light. He sat up and looked at me, and I realized he was _really_ seeing me now.

"Oh, God, Sydney," he said.

"Let's... not talk about this anymore," I said, in the calmest voice I can muster. "Do you want some water?" I held up a water bottle.

"I'm scaring you," Adrian said, ignoring the water and looking at my aura instead. "I'm sorry. I'm _so_ sorry." He got out of bed and held his arms open as if inviting me for a hug. I hesitantly let him take me in his arms. "Really," he murmured. "I'm sorry, sweetheart. I'm almost as much of an asshole as _he_ is. I should be focusing on you, not going off like some machismo monster. I'm sorry. Really. I'm sorry."

"I know," I said, starting to relax again. "It's ok now."

He peppered my face with kisses, then said, "If I ever do that again, feel free to slap me or something," he said.

"I don't want to slap you," I said.

"You sure?" he said. "I have this great big face. It's great for slapping."

"No," I said, smiling. "I don't want to slap you. At the moment, anyway."

He sat back down on the bed, and I turned off the big floor lamp before I sat back down with him. He put his arm around me and I leaned my head on his shoulder. We were quiet for a few minutes.

"Thanks for telling me," he said, finally. "I'm sorry I didn't... handle it so well."

"You're angry because someone hurt me," I said.

"Yeah but... that was really less than ideal, Sage."

"It's ok," I said. "We all lose our tempers from time to time. You do so only rarely." I thought back over it. In all the time I'd known him, the only times I'd ever really seen him really angry were times that I'd been in some kind of danger or distress, or times when the girls were. The rest of the time, he was slow to anger, and quick to calm himself again. It was one of the many things I loved about him. "You're allowed to have a moment, love."

"I just... . I hate the fact that he did that to you and he's just walking around, happy as a jackass clam..."

"Well, he's not as happy now that his girlfriend dumped him," I said.

"That's not enough," Adrian said. "I just... Fuck, Sydney, I could just tear his throat out for what he did to you."

"It won't change the facts," I said. "It would just answer violence with violence."

Adrian sighed. "Maybe. But it would be fun."

"But it's not what I want," I said. "And I'm the one he hurt."

"You're right," he said. "I know you are. I just... ." He let out an exasperated sound. "I can't remember ever hating anyone so much." He paused, then added, "Well, one person."

"Tasha Ozera," I said, softly.

"Yes," he said. "That's it. Rick and Tasha. The only people I actually hate on this earth."

"But killing Tasha won't bring Tatiana back," I said. "And killing Rick won't change what he did to me."

"I know," he said. "I'm sorry I went nuts on you." He squeezed me tight, then we both lay back down and got back under the covers. "Are you ok?" he asked, after we'd gotten settled. "What can I do to help, besides not freaking out on you? Anything?"

"All I really want is for you to um... do what you were doing before. When I was talking and you were stroking my hair..."

"Like this?" he asked, pulling me closer

"That," I said, and rested with my head on his chest for a while, listening to his heart. It was beating much more quickly than it usually was, the last remnant of his anger, but slowly, both of us began to grow more calm. "This helps," I murmured. "Thank you."

We lay that way for a while, and then he spoke again. "Listen," he said. "Nothing I can say or do will make... _that..._ not have happened. But I can tell you this: Violet's _my_ kid, even if she isn't. She's yours and mine. She's not Rick's any more. Those little sperm cells that came out of him, the minute they left him, they weren't him any more. They were as innocent as Violet is."

"Yes," I murmured. "I like that."

"So Violet's my kid now," he repeated. "I stole her fair and square."

I smiled. "She picked you out," I said.

"I guess she did," Adrian said.

We lay quietly for a few minutes, and then I said, "I get so worried for the girls."

"They're safe in our building," Adrian said. "We have good security, and I had it warded by some of the best. But we could hire a guardian if you want..."

"No," I said. "I mean, I'm worried that someone would... hurt them. Not a Strigoi, not Rick..."

"Just a jerk," Adrian supplied. "Just a jackass _like_ Rick."

"Yes," I said.

"We won't let it happen," Adrian said. "They'll be safe because they'll always know how to take care of themselves. That's how we're raising them."

"We are?" I asked.

"Look at little Miss Purple today," Adrian said. "On the dance floor, sticking up for herself."

I thought about that. "You're right," I said, beginning to smile. "She was amazing."

"She absolutely was," Adrian said.

"And you supported her," I said. "You said exactly what needed to be said, right when it needed to be said."

"I've been doing a lot of reading," Adrian said. "I found this website about how to be a good dad to daughters and I read this arti –"

I just couldn't help myself. I grabbed his face and covered it with kisses, interrupting him. He laughed a little – a laugh of pleasure – and kissed me back.

When I stopped, he smiled at me, brushing my hair back. "How will you react if I actually tell you what the article said?"

"Let's find out," I said. "What did the article say?"

"It said that good fathers should teach daughters not to let boys push them around," Adrian said. "And that I should demonstrate that to them by not ever pushing their mother around – not that I ever would."

"Right," I said. I thought about the way my father had always cowed my mother, and how she'd hidden herself away in the garage to get away from him. When I got older, I used to join her there sometimes, when I couldn't stand my father's harsh scrutiny for one more minute. Then I thought about the way the girls ran towards Adrian, not away from him, and I smiled."That sounds good to me."

"And if that doesn't work, we'll teach them how to kick boys in the nuts if the situation calls for it," Adrian said.

"Was that in the article, too?"

"No," Adrian said. "That's my own addition. An Ivashkov original." He paused, then added. "Hey, you're an Ivashkov too, now, right?"

"A Sage-Ivashkov," I corrected.

"Right," he said. "Sydney Sage-Ivashkov. That's an A-plus-plus good name. Would recommend."

"Glad you like it," I said.

"Hmm." he said. "Amaryllis Sage-Ivashkov. Violet Sage-Ivashkov. What do you think? I like it."

"Yeah?" I asked, smiling. "I think they'd like it, too."

"What about Adrian Sage-Ivashkov?" he asked. "I think that it has a certain ring to it."

"It does," I said, keeping the surprise from my voice. Was he serious?

"I should check with my mom and dad first, though, if I do that."

"Really?"

"Definitely," he said. "And then when they disapprove, it'll be even more fun to go ahead and do it anyway."

I laughed. "You're a very modern kind of guy, you know that?" I said.

"I try," he said.

I stared at him, trying to see if he was serious about any of this, and saw only a frank open expression looking back at me. "How did I get so lucky?" I asked him, stroking his cheek.

"I ask myself that all the time," he said, leaning into the caress.

"Adrian Sage-Ivashkov," I murmured. "Royal Moroi, artist extraordinaire..."

"Adrian Sage-Ivashkov," Adrian went on. "Reformed party boy, the late Queen Tatiana's favorite grand-nephew, defender of little girls, and all-around badass."

"And my husband," I said.

"Totally," he said. "That's the best part. Because you're pretty badass yourself, you know."

"Obviously," I said, and put my head back down on his chest.

We lapsed into comfortable silence after that, listening to the sound of the ocean and the frogs. After a while, the frogs began to quiet down, and I hoped it was because they had found mates. On a night like tonight, I didn't want anyone to be lonely – not even a frog.

As I drifted off to sleep, I thought about how, though Adrian and I weren't having sex on our first night as a married couple, maybe we were doing something better, something more important. We were proving something to ourselves about what our relationship was really about. It was true that Rick had done a cruel, soulless thing to me, but his actions didn't have to define the rest of my life. There was good in the world, and there was good in my life, and now I had no more secrets to hide.

_A/N: I wrote a kind of long author's note about this, but I think a lot of people wouldn't really care much so I took it out. It's about Sydney's revelation about what Rick did and stuff like that. It's not super personal or super political but I know that some people don't read fanfic for that so I decided against putting it here. But if you're curious or want to read it, you can go on my Tumblr. _

_But I did want to point one thing out here. It was important to me that Rick didn't hit Sydney, because there are all different kinds of abuse out there. Just because a friend or boy/girlfriend doesn't hit you doesn't mean that s/he isn't abusive. Remember that people who intentionally make you feel small or powerless are all shit-heads like Rick and that you should stay the fuck away from them because they're bad people. You deserve better than that. Also, be kind to the people you know who are in abusive relationships. Abusive relationships don't start out that way – they grow abusive over time and even the strongest among us are vulnerable to them. The best thing to do it to recognize it before it goes further and get the heck out while you can. _

_Also remember that the only thing worse than being in a bad relationship for five years is being in that bad relationship for five years and one day. _

_Just a friendly reminder from your friendly fanfic writer. xo_


	34. Mini chapter and Note

**Author's Note/ Chapter 34 **

_Author's note:_

_So, as you guys noticed, I haven't updated this in a while. Part of the reason for this is that I've been busy with other things. The other reason is that, for some reason, this chapter just... wouldn't go. It's not that I didn't know what would happen in it. I saw all that clearly. It's just that I couldn't get the words out in an order that made sense and was interesting. I'd write a page, delete it, write a page, delete it... It all was oddly boring to read even though by rights it shouldn't have been boring in the slightest. Who doesn't like Sydrian fluff? Nobody doesn't like Sydrian fluff. So yeah, I was in a bind. I really like the scenes I envisioned and don't want to get rid of them, but I couldn't get them out on paper. But I came up with a plan – I'm putting a brief summary here, and I hope that someday I can come back and write it. This way, there's still space to add it in later without ruining the order or having to repost every single chapter, but for now I can still go on to the rest of the story and, it can be hoped, finish it before the next darn book in the series comes out. And then I can FINALLY go back to DITT! _

_Basically, the chapter was going to be about Adrian and Sydney on their honeymoon. Adrian wears the ring that Jill made for him and it protects him from the sun, so they can go outside during the day. They go for a hike in the Volcano National Park, they drive around in their convertible, they go swimming, they see sea turtles, they rent a jeep with open tops and sides and drive it to the top of the mountain to see the stars at night. It's all very cute. They also miss the heck out of the girls and end up going home a day early. And yes, they have sex. Lots of it. But this is a rated T story so it wasn't going to get super graphic. _

_Except for the little scene below that I liked, I guess that'll have to do for now. I'm sorry that I couldn't actually write it for whatever reason. But at least now I'm unstuck and as you see there are more chapters to read! _

_If I end up adding this chapter in again before the story is completely done, I'll mention it in an author's note. If I add it after the story is complete, I'll add an author's note at the end, so that anyone who subscribes will get a note via email. I'll also mention it on tumblr. Thanks for your understanding, lovelies! :) xo _

_So here's the one snippet I decided to keep. _

In the morning, I woke up to sunlight streaming in through the curtains. My first thought was concern for Adrian – was he in the path of the light? My second thought was – where _is_ Adrian? I felt the space next to me, and while the sheets were still warm, he was gone.

A few moments later, he appeared in the doorway with a tray in his hands. "You're awake," he said, grinning. He set the tray down on the table by the bed, saying, "Good morning, wife. Or am I allowed to call you that?"

"Considering that the word 'wife' is etymologically related to the word 'woman,' you're essentially calling me your 'woman' when you call me that," I said, rubbing the sleep dust out of my eyes. I could smell coffee, and I smiled to myself. I had chosen wisely when I'd chosen Adrian.

"Hmm," he said, getting into bed with me. He took a small plate of sliced fruit from the tray and then held it out to me, and I saw that he was wearing the ring that Jill had given him, the one that protected him from the sun. "Where does the word husband come from?" he asked, and ate a strawberry.

"Hmm," I said, taking a few slices of mango from the plate. "Well, as I recall, 'husband' is etymologically linked to the idea of guarding resources and taking care of the things around you," I said, and popped the fruit into my mouth. It was delicious.

"Perfect," he said, putting the plate back down on the tray. "From now on, I'll call you my female husband."

"Please don't," I said, laughing. "We get enough weird looks as it is." I ate the other slice of mango, and moved to lick a little of the juice off my fingers.

Adrian grabbed my hand before I could get it all the way to my mouth. "People just stare at you because you're so pretty," he said, and licked the mango juice off my fingers.

"I thought they were staring at you," I said, starting to to lose my train of thought.

"We've been over this," he said.

"Over what, exactly?" I said, and rolled on top of him. I maneuvered my hips just a little, and Adrian took a deep breath. "Over... _that_?" I asked.

"Something... like... that..." Adrian said, obviously distracted. I trailed my lips down his neck, and he murmured, "You don't want any of the coffee? I brewed it just for you."

"Do you have anything else for me?" I asked, my hands going lower.

"It's all for you," he said. "If you... want it."

"I _do_," I said.


	35. Lions and Blackmail

**Chapter 35: Lions and Blackmail  
**

I was dozing in my room, the door cracked open a little, when my cell phone rang in the living room. I struggled to sit up – a bit of a challenge with my huge belly. I was eight months along now, and felt as big as a house. As I got out of bed and began rushing down the hall, I heard a solemn little voice say from the living room, "Hello? … No, this is Violet. ... Oh, hi." There was a pause, and then the little voice went on, "_You_ sound very grown-up, too."

By then I had reached the living room and I smiled at Violet, who said, "Yes, she's here now. Bye, Aunt Zoe. … What? Oh, yes, I love you, too. Bye." Violet handed the phone over to me, saying, "It's Aunt Zoe, Mom," then ran back down the hall to Amy's room.

"Hi, Zoe," I said into the phone, settling down onto the couch. "How are you doing, getting re-acclimatized to life in Utah?"

I wasn't prepared for her response, which was to say "Shut up, Sydney," in a tone so cold it made the hair on my arms stand on end.

"Are you angry at me?" I asked. Inside me, the baby kicked, twice, really hard. I got the feeling the baby wasn't any happier about this situation than I was.

"I figured out what you did," Zoe said. "Well, what _you_ did, and what Carly helped you do. God, Sydney, did you lose your mind?"

"I feel pretty sane, actually," I said. "What, precisely, are you talking about?" I balled my free hand into a fist, feeling anxious. Zoe had come home from her alchemist assignment last week, a few weeks ahead of schedule. Once Carly had access to Zoe's laptop again, Adrian and I had finally filed our marriage paperwork, making our union officially sanctioned, from a legal standpoint anyway. The alchemist system updated at midnight Eastern time, and Carly had casually accessed Zoe's laptop at just after 10 pm Utah time and deleted the reference to the marriage from the queue. The moment Carly deleted the reference, she texted me to say that all was well, but I knew that there was a chance that it wasn't all over yet. This phone call was exactly what I had been afraid of.

"Don't play dumb," Zoe said, in a low hiss. "You know what you did. It's disgusting. How could you betray humanity in this way? Not to mention your family!"

"Zoe," I said, softly, giving up on plausible deniability. "Please, try to understand."

"What's to understand? I mean, I knew you had 'a thing' for Adrian back in Palm Spring. That was obvious after everything that happened. But I thought you'd grown out of it. And now you go _back_ to him? Did you even think about what this would do to Amy and Violet?"

"Amy and Violet are fine," I said. "Great, in fact. Happier than they ever were when I was married to Rick."

There was a short pause, and then Zoe said, with apparent effort, "Well, yeah, Rick is a … _you_ know. It rhymes with 'Rick'. We all thought so."

"Then why were you all so happy when I married him?"

"Because he was normal," Zoe said. "Normal. From a good family. Not, you know, _evil_."

I sighed. "Depends on how you define the word," I said.

"I'm not going to argue this with you, Sydney," Zoe said. "You know right from wrong, and you chose wrong. By all rights I should take this to my superiors and see what they have to say about it."

"But...?" I prompted, crossing my fingers.

"But it would break Dad's heart," Zoe said. "And he isn't doing well these days. Not that _you'd_ know or care. But those of us who actually spend time with him know how down he is. So I'm going to make you a deal."

"Okay..." I said, slowly. "What deal?"

"You come out here for Thanksgiving," Zoe said. "I know Dad's invited you like, twenty times. He's even offered to buy your plane tickets so I don't know what the hold up is."

I looked down at my belly. As if on cue, the baby kicked, pretty hard, too. I was due the last week of November, just a week after Thanksgiving. "Well, I would visit, Zoe, but that's really not a good time for me to be traveling," I said. "I mean, the girls are just getting used to the new apartment..."

"Oh, that's BS and you know it," Zoe said. "You're coming. You're bringing Amy and Violet, and leaving Adrian behind."

"Zoe, I –"

"Listen, Sydney. It's time for you to start being part of this family again, ok? I want you to visit Dad at least once a year. And just so you know, I'm going to keep watch over Amy and Violet to make sure that Adrian's not having a bad influence on them."

"He wouldn't –"

Zoe barreled along, not letting me speak. "So you're visiting more often, that's part one of the deal."

"How many parts are there?"

"Two," Zoe said. "The other part is you have to promise me not to have any kids with Adrian. It's bad enough that you're married to him, but no way am I going to condone you having... dhampirs." She said the word as if it were a disgusting medical condition.

"Zoe," I said, then stopped. I didn't know what else to say. She sounded so disgusted that I had to assume she wouldn't change her stance if she knew I was already pregnant. I would have to at least give her some time to get used to the idea of me being married to Adrian before I told her about the baby. And it might _never_ be the right time to tell her the truth about Amy. I sighed. "Fine," I said, not knowing what else to say. "I guess that's a deal."

"Good," Zoe said, with satisfaction. "So you'll be here for Thanksgiving?"

"Are you sure that it couldn't just wait until Christmas?" I asked, trying one more time. "Come on, it's only one more month away and it would be a great time to visit..."

"No," she said. "It has to be Thanksgiving. Dad's gotten really sentimental about it ever since Mom died. You know how she used to be about Thanksgiving."

I paused, remembering the turkey shaped cake pans, the harvest themed wall hangings, and the heart-felt grace she'd always said before our family meal. Thanksgiving had always meant so much to her, maybe because it was the one holiday that the church didn't seem to decry in any way. "I remember," I said, feeling a lump come up in my throat.

"Could have fooled me," she said flatly. "Anyway, Dad's all into it. He goes the whole nine, gets out the turkey salt and pepper shakers and everything."

"It sounds great, Zoe, it's just that Thanksgiving is so tough..."

"I told you, Syd, I'm not going to debate this. So, what's it going to be? Do you think you can be part of this family, keep up some sort of vague veneer of normalcy for Dad's sake? Or am I going to give up on you and take it up with my superiors?"

"I'll be there," I said, softly.

"With the girls?"

"Yes," I said.

"And you're leaving _him_ at home?"

"Well, I'm hardly bringing him to dinner, Zoe," I said.

She laughed a little, apparently cheerful now that she was getting her way. "Exactly," she said. "Ok. Just email me your flight info and I can pick you up at the airport."

"I'll probably just rent a car when I get out there," I said. "You don't need to pick us up."

"Ok," she said. "Good idea. And remember, if you go back on the deal, so do I. Clear?"

"Clear," I said.

"Bye," she said, and just like that, she hung up.

I put the phone down and spent a few moments trying to get my bearings. It seemed like a losing battle, though, and pretty soon I found myself following the sound of voices down the hall to Amy's room. I nudged aside the partially open door and peaked inside.

"Hey," I said, looking around. Clothes were scattered everywhere, and Adrian was sitting with his back to the door. "How's it going –"

"_Roar_!" A three foot tall lion lunged at me from the corner, little paws held up aggressively. I let out a surprised shriek and Violet laughed.

"I'm not a lion, Mom," she said. "It's just me." She had put on her lion costume since I'd seen her just a few minutes ago, and Adrian had applied face paint to create the illusion of whiskers, a triangular nose, and other feline features.

"Oh, thank goodness it's you, Violet," I said. "I don't know what I'd do if there was a real lion in my house."

"Probably you'd do one of your cool tricks," she said, as I settled down on a chair. "Does my makeup look good? Do I look like a nice lion?"

"You look like a very nice lion," I said. "Adrian did a good job." Adrian looked over at me and smiled. I could see that Ronnie, Amy's friend, was sitting facing him, though she'd been hidden by him right when I came in. I looked around and saw Amy too, sitting in her pillow pit.

"I didn't want to look too mean," Violet went on, a little worried. "I might scare some of the littler kids if I do." Amy, Violet, and Ronnie were all getting ready for a Halloween party at a classmate's house. Halloween wasn't for another day or two, but it was Saturday night, a good night for a get together. I had a feeling this would be the kind of party where the kids would put their hands into bowls of peeled grapes and be told that they were touching eyeballs. Personally, I didn't think I'd like parties like that, but then again, I'd never really gone to any.

"You look perfect, Violet," I said, and she beamed. "You look like a very nice lion."

She let out another _roar_, and I had to repress the impulse to tell her to quiet down. Rick wasn't here to spoil our fun. In fact, except for a few quick phone calls to deal with the money and other legal issues, I hadn't heard from him since the night the girls and I had left North Carolina. Rick had come through with the two million dollars – he could hardly refuse, considering who he was up against – and most of it was already invested for the girls' future needs. I looked down at Violet, who was leaping around the room and roaring. I said, "That's some good roaring, Violet."

"Yes, you're turning out to be an awesome lion, Miss Purple," Adrian agreed. As I watched, he traced the outline of a butterfly wing on Ronnie's left cheek, a lovely pastel design to go along with Ronnie's fairy princess outfit.

"What do you think of my costume, Mrs. Sage-Ivashkov?" Ronnie asked.

"You look great, Ronnie," I said. The little girl was dressed in a pink sparkly dress covered in layers of tulle, and she had a tiara on, though it was a little crooked. Her wings were lying on the floor in the corner of the room.

"What about me, Mom?" Amy asked, standing up. She had on the stylized tuxedo and top-hat of a lion tamer, and I thought she looked adorable. "I don't like face paint, so I didn't get any. It think it's yucky."

"I'm the same way," I said. "And I think you look great."

"I _like_ face paint," Ronnie breathed. "Are you doing the butterfly, Mr. Ivashkov?"

"I am," Adrian said, slowly, as he drew the other butterfly wing on, then began shading in the design faintly, in pink.

"It looks very pretty," Violet said, sitting down next to Ronnie. "Do fairies like lions?"

"Sure," Ronnie said, and Violet looked relieved. "At least, I think they do. Fairies like animals, I think, so I bet they'd like lions."

"Lion tamers _definitely_ like lions," Amy said, advancing on Violet. "Come here, lion!"

"Rarh, no!" Violet said, jumping to her feet. "_I'm_ not a tame lion! Raarrrrr!"

As Amy and Violet giggled and began chasing each other around the room, Adrian asked me, softly, "Was that Zoe on the phone just now?"

"Yes," I said.

"Is it... bad?"

"Yes," I said.

Adrian shook his head, then shot me a concerned look before continuing with Ronnie's face paint. "Well, you can tell me later, I guess," he said, clearly not wanting to talk about this in front of the girls, and I nodded.

My daughters continued to play their little game as Adrian finished painting Ronnie's face. I watched him working, and I found myself thinking, once again, how lucky I was to be married to someone like him – someone so patient, so creative, so _fun_. We'd been married now for four months, and not once had I ever had reason to regret my decision. Sure, we'd had a few spats. A few times we'd argued over dumb things, and once we actually didn't speak for a whole day. But after every little fight we'd ultimately apologized and forgiven each other. All in all, I was feeling closer to him now than I had when we'd gotten married, and I was pretty sure that we'd keep getting closer and closer as the years went on. "It's looking wonderful, Adrian," I said, settling down on the bed near Ronnie.

"Thanks, sweetheart," he said. "I figured little girl's faces would be a lot like paint canvas. I hope it's ok that I'm using tempura paint. The label doesn't _say_ it's toxic, so..."

Ronnie, not understanding that he was joking, grew pretty anxious looking.

"He's kidding," I said, patting her hand. "That's special paint just for faces."

Adrian, noticing her discomfort, tapped her nose with his finger. "I was just joking, Ronnie," he said.

She relaxed visibly. "Ok, thanks, Mr. Ivashkov."

"I told you that you could call me Adrian," he said.

Her eyes widened and she shook her head faintly. Adrian shrugged and went back to his design. He had sketched a large stylized butterfly over her entire face so that the "body" went down over her nose and one wing covered each cheek. It looked elegant somehow, the way he'd done it. When he was done, Amy helped Ronnie into her wings, and I fixed her tiara a little.

I was just sticking in the last bobby-pin when the doorbell rang. Violet raced to get it, roaring her way down the hallway. I heard her open the door with another roar, and then heard Tina, Ronnie's mother, laughing and asking if Amy and Ronnie were ready to go. Amy replaced her top-hat, Adrian wiped the last of the paint off of his hands, and we all went out to greet Tina.

"Hi, everyone," Tina said. "Oh, wow, Ronnie, your face looks great! Adrian, did you do that?"

"I did," he said. "Don't ever wash it off, Ronnie. It's an Adrian Ivashkov original."

Ronnie regarded him with big eyes and nodded.

"He's just joking, honey," Tina said, patting her daughter's shoulder. "Well, are you girls ready to go?"

"Yes," Amy and Ronnie said, while Violet let out another roar.

"What time should I pick them up?" I asked.

"I think the party's over at about 7:30," Tina said. "Thanks again for suggesting the car pool idea – saves us each a trip."

"Oh, no problem," I said. "Works out better for both of us."

"Mo-om," Ronnie whined. "Come _on_!"

"I'm coming, I'm coming," Tina said, good-naturedly. "Come on, Lion Tamer. Come on, Lion."

Violet roared again, and the three girls followed Tina out of the door as we all said goodbye.

I closed the door behind them and turned around to see Adrian smiling, shaking his head as if in disbelief. "Can you get over Miss Purple?" he asked.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"When I met her, she rarely spoke above a whisper," he said. "Look at her now!"

I thought about it. The change in my younger daughter had been so subtle and gradual that I had hardly noticed it. But over the last eight months, Violet seemed to have grown in so many ways. "You're right," I said. "I can't imagine Violet roaring at people a year ago. Not that she does a lot of roaring these days, but... you know."

"Yeah," Adrian said. "I wonder if it's the karate that's doing it? They say it's supposed to make kids more confident."

"It _could_ be the karate," I said. "But it probably has more to do with the fact that she's living in a house where she can be whatever she wants to be." I had meant that in the sense of choosing a Halloween costume, but the moments the words escaped my lips I realized that the comment could apply in other ways, too.

"As opposed to last year," Adrian said, clearly thinking about Halloween. "Although you did sort of work that out. Do you have pictures of their costumes from last year?" He put an arm around me and guided me towards the couch to sit down. "I remember that Violet was the president, and Amy was her Secret Service agent, but I never saw any pictures."

I smiled. "I think I have a few," I said, settling down on the cushions. "Do you know, you saved last Halloween for us with your suggestion?"

"I didn't do anything," Adrian said. "I just helped you talk it out."

"Maybe," I said. I leaned my head on his shoulder, trying not to be obvious about the fact that I was taking a sniff of him. I loved his scent. Even during my first trimester when nearly everything had either made me nauseated or given me a headache, the scent of his cologne on his skin seemed to soothe me.

"How are you feeling?" he asked now, running an affectionate hand over my belly. "Is the baby kicking a lot?"

"He or she likes to kick," I said. "Just like Violet." I laughed. "_She_ never really grew out of that, come to think of it."

Adrian smiled, remembering the few times over the past several months when Violet had come to our bed in the night, wanting comfort after a nightmare. Each time, she'd almost kicked us out of bed in her sleep. "I guess it's not just a dhampir thing," he said.

As if on cue, the baby kicked again. I winced a little, and Adrian sighed in amazement. "I felt it that time," he said. He'd felt it a few times, but every time he was almost awe-struck. "This baby's got strong legs!"

"I guess it's a Sage thing," I said, and Adrian smiled, his gaze going down to my legs. The apartment was warm, and I was wearing a pair of running shorts that was loose enough to fit over my belly, along with an old sweatshirt of Adrian's that was so big it hung to one side, leaving one of my shoulders bare.

"And speaking of Sage things," Adrian said. "Want to tell me what Zoe said on the phone before that upset you so much?"

I paused. It was so awful that my brain had been actively trying not to think about it. I wanted to keep talking about the girls, and the baby, and other things like that. But now wasn't the time. "It's bad," I said, flatly. "Zoe knows about our marriage."

"And?"

"And she disapproves. To put it mildly."

Adrian patted his lap, and I angled my body so that my legs rested perpendicular to his, my bare legs resting over his denim-covered ones. "What is she going to do with the information?" Adrian asked.

"She's blackmailing me," I said.

"Blackmailing you?" Adrian repeated, surprised.

I told him what Zoe had said, and as he listened, he began to massage my sore feet. When I was done with my recital, he was quiet for a minute, then said, "So, what are you thinking?"

"I don't know," I said. "The only thing I can think of to do is play along. Then, the night before we're supposed to go, we fake some sort of illness or injury that would make it impossible."

Adrian considered that. "Do you think she'd buy it?" he asked.

"I'm not sure," I said. "She might. But she knows I don't want to go and there's a good chance she'd think it was suspicious."

"And if she thought it was suspicious, would she rat you out?"

"Maybe," I said, softly.

"Man," Adrian said, his fingers gently digging into the balls of my feet. "I don't get it. When I knew her back in Palm Springs, Zoe was a spoilsport and kinda immature, sure. But not spiteful. I don't understand why she'd be doing this."

"She's hardened over the years," I said. "Everything that happened back in Palm Springs seemed to have had the opposite effect on her than it did on me. I grew more comfortable with all of you. As the years went by, she seemed to regret any bits of friendship she forged back there and just... went _way_ the other way."

"It's too bad," Adrian said. "I'd expect better from Sage women, you know? Carly is ok. Actually, I like her a lot. She was a lot of fun at the wedding, and she's really sweet to the girls, even knowing that Amy's a dhampir."

"She did freak out at first," I pointed out. "But yeah, she got over it pretty fast."

"And your mom," Adrian went on. "From what you told me, she was pretty cool, too."

"She was a coward when it came to certain things," I said, without malice. It was just true. She could have stood up to my father a million times, but she never did.

"I guess we all are, sometimes," Adrian said, as his hands moved up on my leg to massage my ankles.

"Yeah," I said. "Out of necessity. Case in point: right now on the phone. I didn't stand up to Zoe because I was too scared of what she'd do."

"So let's look at the situation," Adrian said. "You can't go out there because they'll see how pregnant you are. You can't _not_ go out there because Zoe will freak out if you don't."

"Maybe..." I said, thinking out loud. "Maybe I could go with the girls, and then claim that I'm sick once I get there. Carly can come pick up the girls and bring them over to Dad's house, but I can stay back at the hotel."

"Do you really think Zoe and your dad would just let you hide in the hotel room for the whole two days of the visit?" Adrian asked.

"Probably not," I said. I sighed. "There's just no way I can disguise the fact that I'm pregnant, though..."

Adrian perked up at the mention of the word 'disguise.' "Maybe you can," he said, thoughtfully.

"How?" I asked, one eyebrow raised.

"Remember that trick that Lissa and I used a few times, the disguise rings? The rings charged with compulsion to make people see things not quite as they are?"

"Yes, but that couldn't possibly work here, could it?"

"Why not?" Adrian said, with a slow smile. "We once used rings to make a dhampir and a Moroi look human... Why not make a pregnant woman look... you know... like, un-pregnant?"

I paused to consider that. "Do you think it would work?"

Adrian nodded thoughtfully, his hands kneading my calves gently. "I can do it," he said. "For sure. I mean, if people hug you, they'll notice, most likely, but I guess you can kind of lean your body back. Maybe I can put in a compulsion to ignore what they feel when they touch you."

"Then all we'd have to do is teach the girls not to talk about you, or the baby," I said, thinking out loud. I hated the idea of teaching the girls to lie, but what else could I do?

"And, of course, get you out there and back safely," Adrian said. "Is it safe to fly that late into a pregnancy?"

"Yes, though some individual carriers might refuse me," I said. "It's not ideal, but it's safe enough..."

"A private jet would be more comfortable, if a little slower," Adrian said, softly massaging the backs of my knees.

"I guess so," I said. I didn't like to waste that much money, but I knew that it would be tough to fly in a commercial airplane one week away from my due date.

"Then that's what we'll do," Adrian said, in a confident tone. It was as if we were deciding who was going to pick the girls up from a playdate or something. "Easy enough. We'll fly out all together on Wednesday night. You'll wear the disguise ring to Thanksgiving dinner, put in an appearance, let everyone see you and the girls. Then you three can come back to the hotel and we can all leave in the morning on Friday. You only have to deal with your sister and father for five, maybe six hours, then you can come right back. That'll satisfy Zoe, right? She didn't say you had to stay overnight, did she?"

"No," I said, thinking about it. "Do you really think this will work?"

"Only time will tell," Adrian said, with a casual shrug. I knew by now that he wasn't quite as casual as he seemed. He just wasn't the type to want to fret about something over which he had no control. "I think it'll be fine," he added. "Hey, when do we have to go pick the girls up from the party?"

"In about two hours," I said.

"Hmm," Adrian said, as he began massaging my thighs.

"My thighs aren't sore," I said.

"Not yet," he said, and grinned.

Later on, when we were done, Adrian went down to the pool for a swim, and I read for a bit before it was time to go pick up the girls from the party. When they climbed into the car, they were all smiles, so full of sugar that without their seat-belts they might have bounced right up through the roof. I drove us home, then we dropped Ronnie off at her apartment and went back home.

Adrian was waiting for us, and gave each of us a bear hug as if he hadn't seen us in weeks. The girls regaled us with stories of the party. At one point, Violet started to tell us a story that made her giggle so much she had to stop talking. Amy chimed in, trying to help, but she soon collapsed in a pile of giggles as well. Finally, we got the story out of them – one of the other kids at the party had been dressed as a vampire, and apparently had been telling everyone at the party all sorts of "facts" about vampires.

"Like... like... they hate garlic..." Violet gasped, between laughs.

"And... they sleep in coffins..." Amy said.

Adrian and I ended up joining in with the laughter, and we joked around for a little while before Violet slipped away down the hall to her room. She usually needed some alone time after a big social event like this and I didn't give her any hassle about it. Amy was still full of stories, and she told Adrian and me every detail of the bowl full of eyeballs and the bowl of worms. Then she and Adrian played a game on the Holo-Wii while I sat with them reading the paper.

By the time they were done, it was almost time for bed, so I helped Violet clean the paint off of her face, then sat reading with her for a little while. We were reading _Danny The Champion of the World_, an underrated classic by Roald Dahl. When we finished the chapter, Violet took my hand and squeezed it.

"Mom," she asked. "Can I wear my lion costume to school on Tuesday? That's real Halloween."

"If your school says it's ok," I said. "It's a good costume."

"It's my favorite costume," she said, and then her eyes swept over to the wooden box in the corner. Her birthday present from my father, the one that had taken so long to reach us and had been the subject of so much discussion, had turned out to be a box of dress up clothes. I had thought Violet would be too old for stuff like that, but they were really good quality outfits, made from actual cloth, with real embroidered accents, making them quite different from the cheap, tacky plastic that most dress-up clothes were made of. Violet liked to sit in her room, reading, while dressed as a princess, a doctor, or a superhero, often matching the outfit to the theme of the book. Now she looked a little guilty, as if she were being disloyal to prefer the lion costume to the others, and she said, "I still like the ones Grampa got me."

"I know you do, Violet," I said, and kissed her on the forehead. "He would be glad that you have another costume you like. I liked your lion costume a lot."

"I think I'll be a lion again next year," she said, and then her expression darkened. "Will we still be here with Adrian-Daddy next year?" She reached out to grip my hand tightly.

"We'll still be with him," I said. "Things will be almost the same, except you'll have a little brother or sister."

"Promise?" she asked, looking at me closely.

"I can't promise," I said. "Sometimes things happen that we can't predict. But I will do everything I can to make sure we stay together, the four of us – well, the five of us."

Violet considered that for a moment, then nodded and let go of my hand. "Ok," she said, and snuggled back down into her covers. "Maybe, next year, we can dress the baby up as a lion cub," she suggested, and yawned. "They make costumes for babies, don't they?"

"They do," I said.

There was a knock on the door, and then Adrian stepped into the room. "Are you two done reading?" he asked.

"For tonight," I said.

"For a week," Adrian said, triumphantly. "It's my turn starting tomorrow." Now that Amy had outgrown being read to, Adrian and I had to fight over the chance to read to Violet, and both of us hoped she'd take her time outgrowing the nightly ritual.

Violet held up the book we'd been reading. "Want to borrow it, Daddy?" she asked. "So you can get up to the part where I am?"

"Ok," Adrian said, as he came over to her bed. "Guess I have a little homework."

I stood up to give him room to sit down. "Ok, you two can visit a little," I said. "I'll say goodnight now." I leaned down to give her a hug and a kiss, and then slipped out of the room to go to Amy's room.

I found my older daughter propped up in bed reading _A Wrinkle in Time_ by Madeline L'Engle. "Oh, that's a good one," I said, as I sat down with her.

She nodded and put her bookmark into the book. "They were just at the part where they go two-dimensional," she said. "That part is so creepy."

"Well, you can finish the chapter if you want," I said. "Just don't stay up too late, ok?" I had gotten a bit more relaxed about forcing Amy go to bed early. She legitimately didn't need as much sleep as humans did, and it wasn't fair to force her to lie in bed when she wasn't tired.

"Okayyyyy," she said, heavily, but smiled at me.

"Everything going ok?" I asked. "It sounds like the party was fun."

"It was," she said. "Everyone complimented Ronnie on her face paint, and I told them all it was my Dad who did it. Now everyone wants Dad to do their faces."

I laughed. "Don't tell him that," I said. "You'll make his head get even bigger."

She smiled. "Too late," she said. "He came in just before to say goodnight and I already told him."

"Fine," I said, with another laugh. "Maybe it's impossible to make his head any bigger, anyway."

Amy nodded. "Hey, Mom, I meant to ask you, can I have a sleepover with Margot sometime? Or, I mean, something like that? Since she couldn't come to my birthday party, I mean."

Amy had turned eleven the previous month, and we'd had a big sleepover party with most of her friends from her grade. We weren't able to invite Margot, since it just wasn't feasible to have a Moroi around that many humans. Her sleeping schedule was different, for starters, and her appearance might have raised some eyebrows. To top it off, she and Ronnie really didn't get along, for some reason. In fact, Margot often didn't get along with most other children. There were times that I wondered what Amy saw in Margot as a friend, but it was clear that to Amy, at least, Margot was considerate, friendly, and fun. I wasn't sure what to make of it.

"I can try to set something up," I said. "Maybe you two could do something fun like see a late-night showing of a movie with Adrian."

"Oooh," she breathed. "That'd be so much fun."

"Ok," I said. "I'll do what I can."

"Cool," she said. "Oh, also, I wanted to ask you: what was Aunt Zoe calling about, before?"

"She just was... inviting us to go out to your grandfather's house for Thanksgiving," I said.

"But that's when the baby's coming," she said, looking concerned. "Are we going?"

"We... probably are," I said. "But if you do, you can't tell your grandfather anything about Adrian, or the baby, ok?"

She laughed. "Um, Mom, like, I think he'll _notice_ the baby."

"He might not," I said. "Let's not worry about it for right now, ok?"

"Fine," Amy said. She stretched and yawned. "Maybe I'll just go to sleep now. Tomorrow Dad and I are going to that Canopy Tour thing and I want to be wide awake."

There was a place in the Poconos, a few hours outside of Philadelphia, where you could get attached to a special harness and transverse an obstacle course set up in the treetops. Amy had been dying to go, but the rest of us had no particular interest, so Adrian decided to take her for "Daddy day." He was planning to cheer her on from the ground below, of course.

"That's a good idea," I said. "If you're going to turn out the light now, do you want me to turn on your star thing for you?"

"Oh, yeah, that'd be great. Thanks, Mom."

My father had insisted on sending a gift to Amy for her birthday, so I had given him my work address and he'd sent the gift there. It had turned out to be a small device that, when turned on in a dark room, projected a detailed, accurate night sky. It could even display the moon and stars as they would have appeared on any particular date. It had a built in white-noise feature, which was useful for helping Amy sleep. I turned the device on, then turned the room light off, so that the stars could be seen. Then I gave Amy a hug and a kiss goodnight, and turned to leave the room.

"Hey, Mom?"

"Yes?"

"I heard what you were telling Violet before. About us staying here with Dad. You meant it, right?"

"We're staying with him," I said.

"Good," she said. "I like things the way they are."

"They're going to change when the baby gets here," I said. "Are you ready for that?"

She shrugged. "It'll be ok," she said. "The baby will be cool. I just know it."

I smiled, then blew her another kiss and wished her one more "goodnight." Then I went out to the living room to wait for Adrian to come out of Violet's room, which he did a few minutes later.

"Hey, gorgeous," he said, sitting down next to me on the couch. "What are you thinking? Movie? Or do you want to go to bed early?"

"Movie," I said.

He nodded. "I'll get you some tea," he said. He puttered around in the kitchen for a few minutes while I picked out a movie to watch, then sat down with a mug of mint tea for me. I had developed a fondness for it during my first trimester, when I used it to settle my stomach, and now I liked a cup at night before bed. I thanked him, and then we cuddled up together to watch the movie. When I was done with my tea, I put my head down on his shoulder and relaxed.

The next thing I knew, Adrian was putting me down in bed and crawling in with me. I made a confused sort of noise and Adrian said, "You fell asleep, sweetie." He laughed a little, low in his throat. "You were snoring a little. Don't worry, it was cute."

"It's the baby's fault," I said, sleepily. "I don't have enough room for my lungs with this thing inside me."

"I'll remind you of that after the baby's born and you're still snoring," he said, affectionately. He lay down next to me, cuddling up to me, his chest against my back.

"Hmm," I said. I didn't have the energy to say anything else, and my eyes felt like lead.

Wasn't there something... something I'd been worried about today? _No_, I told myself. Something had happened and Adrian and I had come up with a plan to deal with it, like we dealt with everything. And everything would be ok.

But as I drifted off to sleep, a part of me began to wonder.

_A/N:_

_I got a question about this and realized I should add an author's note for my out-of-the-country readers. :)_

_Halloween is October 31st. In case you don't know, in America the tradition is to dress up in funny costumes and eat candy, for some reason. I think they do that in other countries too, but I'm not sure._

_ Thanksgiving in America is the fourth Thursday in November, so it can be anywhere from the 22nd to the 28th of November. Really... it's weird. Most people take Friday off from work and school, as well. Families gather and eat a dinner of turkey, cranberry sauce, stuffing, mashed potatoes, and a dessert of pumpkin pie (which might sound gross but I promise is DELICIOUS and not at all healthy!). The idea is supposed to be to give thanks for what we have, but usually it's just an excuse to eat too much and sometimes watch sports on TV. (If you're curious, Thanksgiving in Canada is in mid October.)_

_ So, in the story, it's late October, and Thanksgiving is falling early that year, so they have about three weeks to figure out what to do about the trip to Utah. :) Hope that clarifies a little for anyone curious. :)  
_


	36. Visiting

**Chapter 36: Visiting**

The day before Thanksgiving, our private jet touched down at a small airport outside Provo, Utah, only a half an hour away from the house where my dad lived. An attendant helped bring our luggage down to the tarmac as we made our way down the stairs – the girls leaping like little jumping beans, and me moving as slowly as someone trying not to spill a very full mug of coffee. The day was cold and windy, despite the bright sun, and something about the way the leafless trees seemed to clutch at the empty sky made me feel nervous. Well, _more_ nervous.

The minivan we'd rented was waiting for us at the airport, and I let Adrian drive as we made our way over to the hotel. The hotel didn't have suites, so Adrian, in his typical overblown fashion, had rented three rooms: one for the girls, one for me and him, and one to serve as a living room. We checked in, then Adrian helped the girls settle in while I took a little bit of a rest.

Naturally, as they unpacked, both my daughters realized that they had forgotten key items. Amy hadn't brought a toothbrush,and Violet had forgotten clean underwear. When they reported this to me, I teased Adrian for the bad job he'd done in supervising their packing – and then, a few moments later, I realized that I'd forgotten to bring body wash or razors. Adrian magnanimously let the matter slide, for which I gave him a kiss.

"It could have been worse," Adrian said, as we considered our options. "We could have forgotten Elephanty."

Violet clutched her stuffed elephant in alarm. "I'd _never_ forget _him_," she said, eyes wide at the mere thought.

Amy rolled her eyes. "Aren't you getting too old for stuffed animals?" she asked.

"It's called a comfort item and it's very healthy to have one," Violet said, primly. "I read about it online. Besides, you still have Big Bear."

"That's different," Amy said. "And I don't bring him everywhere. He was a present from Grampa, is all."

"Ok, ok," I said, interrupting before the situation escalated. "Let's not argue about this, ok? Why don't we just go find a Walmart or something and pick up what we need?"

"Good idea," Adrian said. He'd been using his phone while the girls had argued, researching. "There's one about a five minute drive from here."

"Can I bring Elephanty?" Violet asked.

"As long as you carry him," I said.

"Deal," Violet said. She tucked one of his floppy legs into the belt attached to her dress, then examined the effect with apparent satisfaction. I was fairly certain that he'd fall out any moment, but she'd have to learn that on her own.

"We should probably put on the disguises," Adrian suggested, just a moment before I could say just the same thing. We both slipped on the rings that Adrian and Lissa had labored on for almost a week, rings intended to make me look like a non-pregnant version of myself, and to make Adrian look human. While he was at it, Adrian added the ring that Jill had made him that protected him from the sun.

"You look the same, Mommy," Violet said, studying us. "So do you, Adrian-Daddy."

"That's because you know us too well," Adrian said.

"But doesn't Grampa know Mom too well?" Amy asked.

Adrian and I had considered that issue. "We tested it," I said. "It seems to work as long as the person doesn't know that I'm pregnant." About a week ago, a friend I'd known in North Carolina was passing through Philadelphia, and I'd met her for lunch, wearing the ring. She hadn't made a single comment about pregnancy, babies, or due dates, and I hadn't even caught her glancing at my belly. She didn't strike me as the kind of person to ignore a pregnancy as obvious as mine, so I had to conclude that she was legitimately fooled.

The girls nodded, satisfied with that explanation. I wished I were as satisfied as they were, but there was nothing more I could do to assure the success of the plan, so I simply had to go through with it. We collected our things and went back down to the minivan.

A few minutes later we were wandering the aisles of an enormous Walmart. It was odd how going to an unfamiliar location of a familiar chain could be so disorienting. When I'd lived here, this Walmart hadn't been here, so I didn't have the least clue as to where they kept the items we needed. We had to stop twice and ask for directions, and I found myself thinking of lines from the Bible about people wandering through the desert for generations. We ended up adding more things to the cart than we'd come for, of course – some diet cola, microwave popcorn, baby carrots, and other snacks for the room, as well as a collection of flavored lip glosses that the girls pined for.

The girls were examining a row of hair elastics when Adrian touched my arm. "Hey, Syd," he said, gesturing to a stand-up display of dried seaweed snacks. "It's those weird things you love. Should we get some?" I immediately grabbed a few bags and threw them in the cart, and Adrian laughed. "What _is _it with you and those things?" he asked.

"I can't help myself," I said, adding a few more bags. "Must be a pregnant thing. I've been craving them like crazy this whole last trimester."

There was a polite cough behind us and I saw a Walmart employee just a foot or two away, holding Elephanty. "Pretty sure your daughter dropped this," he said. "Other aisle over."

"Thanks so much," Adrian said, and stepped forward to take the toy from the employee's outstretched hands.

"Yes, thank you," I said, sincerely. "My daughter would have been heartbroken to lose that elephant." Inside I was kicking myself for not noticing that she had dropped it, and blamed my negligence on my high anxiety levels.

"No problem," the man said. "I have a little girl myself." He looked at me more closely. "Hey, aren't you Sydney Sage?"

I looked at him, too. Light brown hair, washed out blue eyes that stuck out a little from his face. It took a moment, but then I recognized him as someone I'd known from church, many years ago. We were about the same age, and he'd had an older sister about Carly's age, so we'd seen each other a lot when we were children. "_Adam_," I said. "Adam Greenwood. How are you?"

"Ok," he said. "I mean, this job is just a temporary thing. I'm really working construction, but there aren't a lot of projects lined up for the winter, and I hate drawing unemployment, so I got a job here. They pay time and a half around Thanksgiving. How are you? Is this your husband?"

"Um," I said. "No, just a friend."

"Chester Steele," Adrian said, holding out his hand for Adam to shake. He looked Adam up and down with clear approval. "What was _your_ name again?"

"Adam Greenwood," Adam said, uncomfortable. Adrian was giving every indication of being attracted to Adam, a ploy I thought was pretty genius. "So, um," Adam said to me, "when are you due? You're in the last trimester?"

A chill went down my spine. Automatically, I touched the ring on my left index finger, making sure it was there – which it was. How could he see my condition? Belatedly, I realized that he must have overheard me talking about pregnancy cravings and trimesters, and I wanted to kick myself. Apparently, that's all it took to break the spell.

"I uh, don't really want to talk about it," I said. "I'd appreciate you not talking about it with anyone else, ok? It wasn't exactly planned."

Adam stared at me. "Oh," he said, chastened. "Forget I mentioned it."

"No problem," I said, brightly. "Don't worry. It's not a big deal. Thanks again for rescuing Elephanty. You've done your good deed for the day."

Adam nodded, smiling slowly, still confused by my unwillingness to talk about my pregnancy. "Like I said, it was my pleasure."

"I should buy you a drink," Adrian said, coquettishly.

"Gee, thanks," Adam said, shifting from one leg to the other almost like a little kid who needed the potty. "But I uh, don't drink."

"That's ok," Adrian said. "Neither do I." He winked.

I have no idea what he was trying to imply, but in any case, his mission was accomplished. Adam gave us a quick goodbye, then all but ran in the other direction. The man was just disappearing behind a display of pimple remedies when I heard a cry of alarm. Adrian and I hurried over to Violet's side.

"Elephanty!" she sobbed. "I dropped him! I'm a bad mommy!"

"He's right here," Adrian said, handing the stuffed elephant over to its rightful owner. "It's ok," he said, wiping away Violet's tears. "He just wanted to have an adventure, I guess."

Violet clutched the toy to her chest tightly. "Poor Elephanty," she said. "Don't worry. I won't drop you again. I won't abandon you or be mean to you all of a sudden for no reason. I know I'm not your _real_ Mommy, but I love you anyway."

Amy rolled her eyes, but her smile was indulgent. "Come on," she said. "Let's go find toothbrushes."

We managed to find the rest of the things we needed and checked out without incident, and we returned to the hotel, stopping off at Starbucks on the way. As Adrian and the girls played a hand of Crazy Eights, I sat sipping my horrible decaffeinated coffee and thinking. It was only 4pm, about an hour before sunset. There was something I had been thinking about doing, while I was in town. I considered it for a few more minutes, then spoke up.

"Hey, Adrian, girls? Would you three be ok without me for an hour or so?"

Adrian looked up. "Where are you going?"

"I just want to go to the cemetery," I said.

"To visit Grandma?" Amy whispered.

"Yes," I said.

"I don't remember Grandma," Violet said, softly.

"_I_ do," Amy said.

"You couldn't," Violet said. "You were only three. People don't remember things from when they were three."

"Maybe _humans_ don't," Amy said. "I'm a dhampir."

Violet set her jaw. "No one ever said dhampirs are good at remembering things," she said.

"No one said they _aren't_," Amy said.

"Ok, ok," I said. "It's possible Amy remembers her, Violet. But let's not fight about it, ok?"

The girls nodded, unconvinced.

"If you really want to go by yourself, we'd be ok without you, of course," Adrian said. "But I don't know if you really want to be alone. We should at least drive over with you. Just in case."

He didn't say it, but I knew what he was thinking. I was due in about five days, and in all honesty, I could go into labor at any moment. "Ok," I said. "I guess you're right."

"We can wait in the car," Adrian said.

"No, that's silly," I said. "We can all go."

"To the cemetery?" Violet asked. She looked worried.

"It's ok," Amy said. "Cemeteries aren't scary. It's not like in movies."

She spoke as if she'd been going to cemeteries daily her whole life, and I wracked my brain, trying to remember if she'd ever actually seen one in person. Violet nodded, though, apparently comforted by Amy's comment, and I decided to let it slide.

"Amy's right," I said. "It's a pretty place, with green grass, statues, and flowers. Actually, if we see a flower shop, we can get something nice for Mom."

"Ooh," Violet said. "Flowers. Can I pick them out?"

"Maybe," I said. "Ok, are we all ready to go? I want to go before it's too dark."

Violet sprang to her feet. "Yes, let's go right now," she said, clearly scared of being at the gravesite after sunset.

We got ready to go – I had to reassure the girls that it was ok to go in clothes that weren't black – and after a few minutes we were back in the minivan. We found a small floral shop near the cemetery, and we chose a bouquet of lilac, Mom's favorite flower. Then we continued on to Pleasant Slumbers Cemetery, parking the minivan in a small parking lot near the caretaker's cottage in the middle of the grounds. There were only two other cars there, and the place felt lonely, though the graves were clearly well maintained.

Adrian grabbed the bouquet, and I guided us down the paved path to the section where Mom was buried. I'd been here only once before, during the burial six years ago, yet I remembered the location as clearly as if I'd been here dozens of times in the past few years. The girls walked quietly, almost on tiptoe, as if through a room of sleepers, and Adrian offered me his arm to support me. The sun was so bright that I wanted to put on sunglasses, but it seemed wrong somehow to wear sunglasses in a graveyard, and I made do by shading my eyes with my hands.

We reached the grave and stood looking at it. The granite slab bore my mother's name along with the simple inscription, "Beloved wife and mother," and then a quote that I recognized from Corinthians: "_Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?" _I knew the quote was meant to sooth and comfort, to speak of everlasting life, but it seemed inappropriate. Death had taken my mother away from us. The Strigoi _had_ claimed victory.

"Hey," Adrian said, softly. "Do you want me to place the flowers, or do you want to?"

"You can," I said. "It's too hard for me to bend down."

Adrian squeezed my arm, then knelt to place the flowers at the grave. The hard part was finding a free space to put them down. There were flowers all over the grave – five bouquets of white lilies, each in a different stage of decay. Looking at them from left to right was almost like looking at a series of time lapsed photos. But Adrian managed to move some of them aside to make room for our addition.

"Do you want us to step away, Sydney?" Adrian asked. "We can give you a minute."

"It's ok," I said.

Amy knelt down by the grave, and Violet followed her lead. We were all quiet, and I wondered what Mom would think of the four of us – well, four-and-a-half – all here together. Would she be happy for me? I had to believe that she would be.

I was trying to think of the right words to say when Adrian said, "Someone's coming." I looked up, and saw that a figure was walking towards us, only about 100 meters away, fighting the wind that was blowing directly at him.

It was my father.


	37. A Good Soldier

**Chapter 37: A Good Soldier **

He was wearing a trim wool coat and an old fashioned peaked gray wool hat, and he carried a small bouquet of what looked to be white lilies. He was coming up on us quickly, making his way down the slight hill that had originally hidden him from our view. There wasn't anything we could do to run or hide– he'd already spotted us and was waving.

"Sydney," he called. "Is that you? And do I see my Amy and Violet?" He sounded so happy to see them that I found myself, irrationally, a little jealous of my daughters. My father showed them so much more affection than he had ever shown me. On hearing their names, the girls offered their grandfather tentative waves, glancing at me in apprehension. Nervously, I checked the ring on my right index finger. It was safe and sound. I relaxed slightly – but only slightly.

"Hi, Dad," I called. Adrian and I exchanged looks. How were we going to explain Adrian's presence?

When my father got close enough, Amy threw her arms around his waist, and I heard him laugh as he hugged her tightly to him.

"You've gotten so big!" he said, awkwardly lifting her up off the ground a few inches, one of his hands still clutching the bouquet of lilies. "An old man like me can't lift you up and swing you around any more!"

Amy grinned, her enthusiasm at seeing her grandfather apparently outweighing all of the concerns I had tried to press into her before we left for the trip. "You're not too old, Grampa," she said. "You're a normal Grampa age."

"Hi, Violet," he said, to my younger daughter. "You've gotten so big, too! And I hear you're doing karate now?"

Violet nodded, smiling. "I'm a yellow belt now," she said.

"That's great," my father replied, then cast me a dark look, adding, "I hadn't heard that. Your mother should have told me."

"Sorry," I said, keeping my temper in check. "We've just been so busy."

"Phone call takes but a minute," my dad said. "Well, no matter. And you," he added, his face blank, offering Adrian his hand to shake. "Don't believe we've met. Jared Sage. And you are?"

"Chester Steele," Adrian said, smiling and shaking his hand. "You can call me Chet."

My dad looked him up and down, then apparently dismissed him. "So," he said, looking down at the girls. "You decided to visit your grandmother? I bet she appreciates that."

"But she's –" Violet said, then cut herself off. "Hmm," she amended. "_Maybe_ she does."

"Even people in heaven know when people on earth care about them," my dad said, kneeling down to put his bouquet of lilies on the grave. Belatedly, I realized that this bouquet was an exact match for the older bouquets that we'd noticed earlier. He began examining the other bouquets and removing the wilted flowers from each. These he placed in a small paper bag, which he then shoved in his pocket. His housekeeping complete, he turned his attention back to us. "That's why it's so good that you came to visit today. Did you bring these purple flowers?"

"Yes," Violet said.

"I didn't know your mother liked lavender," my father said to me.

"They're lilac," I said. "They were her favorite."

"Her favorite?" my father responded. "Her favorite was lilies."

"Maybe she liked both," Violet said, faintly, and pulled Elephanty from her belt loop and began bouncing him up and down. His limp legs flopped around in a little jig, and Violet watched him dancing. For a moment, there was quiet in the graveyard.

"I _remember_ Grandma," Amy said, breaking the silence, then looked at my dad as if she expected him to challenge her.

He smiled, got to his feet, and put his hand on her shoulder. "She remembers you, too," he said. "Who could forget such a bright little girl?"

"Does she remember me?" Violet asked, in a near-whisper. Elephanty had stopped dancing.

"Of course," Dad said. "She's watching us right now." Violet looked around, as if maybe my mother was behind a bush or something, and Dad turned to me. "So, when did you land, Sydney?" he asked.

"Few hours ago," I said. "We settled in and I figured we might as well visit Mom while we had time."

"Good idea," he said. He looked over at Adrian again, and paused, blinking hard, as if there was something in his eyes.

Amy spoke up quickly. "Thanks for the star projector," she said. "I love it. I use it every night. It was my favorite birthday present this year."

"Good," my dad said, pleased. "And you, Violet? Did you like your birthday gift, even though it arrived so late?"

"Oh, yes," Violet said. "My favorite is the doctor outfit."

Dad frowned slightly. "Doctor outfit? I don't remember there being a doctor outfit. There was a nurse outfit..."

"Yes," Violet said, tucking Elephanty into her belt-loop again. She twisted his trunk around the belt twice so that he was securely attached this time. "But I decided it was a doctor outfit," she said, as she worked. "And it's my favorite."

"Oh," Dad said. "Good. Well, I'm glad you like it." He looked at me, about to say something, then seemed to lose his train of thought, apparently distracted. He took off his glasses, rubbed his eyes, replaced his glasses, and looked at me again. I felt a bead of sweat drip down the curve of my spine.

"Listen, Dad," I said, thinking fast. "It was great seeing you, but the girls and I are tired, and we were just about to leave when you arrived. We can always visit more tomorrow." I found myself crossing my fingers, hoping that in a crowded busy room, Dad wouldn't notice the disguise – especially if I was seated so that my belly wasn't visible anyway. Violet, picking up on the increased tension in the air, began to walk slowly over to my side.

"You can't go so soon," my dad said. "I haven't had a chance to talk to your _friend_ here. I'm not really clear why he's here with you at your mother's grave." As he spoke, he took off his glasses again, then cleaned them with a small cloth that he had pulled from his pocket. He replaced his glasses, looked closely at me and Adrian again, then shook his head, clearly confused.

"I just met Sydney here on the airplane," Adrian said. "We realized we were staying at the same hotel, so she agreed to drive me to the hotel if I'd pitch in for the gas and stuff. We ended up chatting and since I didn't have anything else to do, I thought I'd go with her to the cemetery. I think my great-grandparents are buried here, though I'm not sure."

"What'd you say your surname was?" my dad asked.

"Steele," Adrian said. "With an 'e' at the end."

"Don't remember ever seeing any Steeles in this yard," Dad said. "And I've spent a lot of time here in the last few years."

"Might have been another cemetery," Adrian said. "I'll have to ask my aunt or my cousins."

Dad peered at Adrian. "You remind me of someone," he said. He paused, then glanced up at the bright sun, squinting. He looked back over at Adrian, saying, "But you couldn't be who I think you are. It's all wrong."

"I just have one of those faces," Adrian said. "People always say I remind them of someone. Hope whoever I remind you of was an ok guy."

"No," my dad said. "He wasn't 'ok.' He was..." He trailed off, rubbing his eyes again. "There's something really wrong here," he said, and began unbuttoning his coat.

"No, there isn't," Adrian said, smoothly. "It's just a stressful situation, I guess. The holidays are so stressful, aren't they? Every year I just try to get from the day before Thanksgiving to the day after New Year's without losing my mind, but it's not easy. In any case, there really isn't anything too weird about this situation, right? Just some people here to pay respects to your late wife. I hear she was a really wonderful woman."

Even from where I stood, I could swear that I felt the waves of compulsion coming from Adrian and moving toward my father. But my father had been trained in alchemy to a degree that made me look like an amateur, and he could resist compulsion extremely well. He closed his eyes and began murmuring, "In God there is truth. In God am I free." As he repeated this phrase, he reached into a small bag he wore at his hip and pulled out a small bag of pale blue powder.

I watched, helpless, knowing what the powder was and what was going to happen next. I wondered if prisoners on their way to their execution felt the way that I felt now. The situation was what it was, and I couldn't fight it, couldn't change it, couldn't escape. An eerie sense of calm held me in its grasp, maybe because my brain had gone into some sort of system crash. My father kept his eyes closed as he opened the packet of illusion-destruction powder. I reached for Adrian's hand, remembering suddenly that awful night in Keith's apartment, when we had thought we were going to die. Amy and Violet drew closer to me and Adrian, and we waited together, silently. Then my father released the spell-busting powder into the wind and it blew directly at us. My father opened his eyes, and I knew that he was seeing us as we truly were.

A look of horror crossed his face. He looked at me, looked at Adrian, then fumbled for words. Finally, he said, "Does Rick know you're pregnant? Do you plan to tell him?"

"Dad, I..."

"And how could you desecrate your mother's grave this way, bringing one of those creatures here, when one of their kin killed your mother?"

Violet whispered, "What does desecrate mean?" I squeezed her shoulder to let her know I'd heard her, and she nodded, understanding that I'd tell her later.

Meanwhile, Adrian was replying to my father's comment. "I'm very sorry for your loss sir, really, I am. From what Sydney tells me, your wife was a wonderful person, and her death is a tragedy. But I have to say that it wasn't one of my 'kin' who killed her." He spoke politely but firmly, clearly trying to keep his emotions in check. "Comparing a Moroi to a Strigoi is like comparing a sparrow to a velociraptor." a He smiled a little, hoping to charm my father, but it didn't work.

"Shut up," my father said, irritably. "What is your real name, anyway?"

Adrian glanced at me, and I shrugged.

"Adrian Ivashkov," Adrian said. "It is nice to meet you, sir. I've heard a lot of good –"

Dad interrupted him. "Ivashkov," he said. "I know who you are. I believe we've met, or at least I've seen photos of you. You're the grand-nephew of that so-called queen, the one whom someone staked."

To Adrian's credit, he didn't react to my father's crass reminder of Tatiana's violent death. He just nodded and said, "Yes, that's me. Sir."

"You were in Palm Springs when Sydney was there guarding that young Dragomir female," Dad said. "Never figured out why you were there. Not related to anyone. Not important or useful in anyway."

"Maybe it was fate," Adrian said. "Maybe I was destined to meet your daughter."

"_God _moves men and mountains," my father said. "Not fate. And God has no concern for an evil thing like you."

"He's not evil, Grampa," Violet ventured, her voice a whisper. "He's very nice to us. He'd never hurt us or bite us. Also, when my arm was broken, he fixed it for me so it never hurt any more. It was like... _magic_." Violet smiled, winningly, and my heart broke, because I knew that she had just made the situation worse.

My father turned to me. "He used magic on the girls?" he said. "You allowed him to use magic on them?"

"Would you rather have let Violet suffer through a broken arm?" I asked. "She was only six years old, Dad, and there was no way we could get her medical help right away. She bore it like a good little soldier, you know. I was so proud." I smiled down at Violet, and she smiled a little, then began fiddling with Elephanty again.

"It's better to have a broken body with an undamaged spirit than the reverse," my father said.

"Easy for you to say, when there isn't a little girl sobbing her eyes out in front of you," Adrian said, unwisely.

"Stay out of this," Dad said. "This is a family matter."

"Yes, it is," I said, feeling the heat of anger rising in me. "This is between you and me. This is about you wanting me to raise my daughters the way that I myself was raised. And this is about me wanting my daughters to have a better childhood than I did."

"And you think that you didn't have a good childhood?"

"I didn't even _have_ a childhood!" I shouted. "I had studies! I had discipline! I had nothing else!"

"There's more to raising a child than giving in to every little thing," Dad said.

"Why do you have to make it about 'giving in'?" I asked. "It shouldn't be a battle."

"You'll learn when you get older," Dad said. "You have to do what's right for children, even if it isn't 'fun' or 'cool'."

"But Adrian _is_ what's best for us," Amy said. "He's so nice to us, Grampa. He helps me with my flashcards and he reads stories to us... ."

My father caught my eye. I saw what he was thinking – _This Moroi is living with you? _Of course, I could give no reply. And Amy was still talking. I felt frozen in place.

"...And he makes us scrambled eggs in the mornings and he cheers us up if we have bad days and he buys us nice presents and plays with us." She smiled, as if she had scored a point, then added, "_And_, he's so nice to Violet. He's just as nice to Violet as he is to me, even though he's not her _real_ dad."

My father's eyes widened as the implications of Amy's words sunk in. Adrian covered his face with his hands, and Amy looked around, sensing that she'd said something wrong, but not sure what it was.

"Moroi," my father said, addressing Adrian. "Uncover your face."

Reluctantly, Adrian took his hands from his face, and my father looked back and forth from Adrian's face to Amy's. He was seeing the same thing that countless strangers had seen in the past few months: a similarity so clear and obvious that doubt as to Amy's paternity was impossible. When my father seemed to have taken in this fact, he looked at me with a look so full of revulsion and anger that I wanted to turn away. But I forced myself to look him in the eye. I had nothing to be ashamed of. After a moment or two, he turned to me and spoke.

"Sydney," he whispered. "Tell me that I'm mistaken. Tell me that you haven't..." He broke off mid-sentence and began coughing. I waited a moment, and when his coughing didn't subside, I helped him over to a nearby bench so he could sit down. He continued to cough, and after a few moments, Amy came over, her big green eyes full of concern. Violet and Adrian trailed after her at a respectful distance.

"Grampa?" Amy said. "Grampa, are you ok? If you can't stop coughing, Adrian might be able to help you. He's good at fixing sick people."

My father, unable to draw in enough breath to speak, pushed Amy away. Amy pulled back, chastened, unsure what was going on, then started scratching a mosquito bite on her leg, making a pretense of being unconcerned with the sitatuion. My father continued to cough, though, and Adrian began drawing closer, perhaps worried, as I was, that my father might need medical attention. Violet walked a step or two behind him, timidly.

"Dad?" I said, tentatively. "Should we take you to the doctor? Or maybe get you some water?"

He shook his head, waving his hands at me to push me away. His coughs came more slowly and then stopped completely. There was a long silence, when all we heard was the wind through the empty trees. Then my dad said, in a thick voice, "I always wondered why you married Rick so quickly. Now it all makes sense." He paused, then repeated, "It all makes sense."

After a short pause, Amy spoke up again, very tentatively. "Are you ok now, Grampa?" she asked, genuine concern in her voice. "Do you want some water or something? Are you going to cough some more? Sensei says we should drink lots of water if we feel dizzy or sick. I can get you some water maybe. I think there's some in the car."

"No," my father said. "Please don't stand near me. I'm fine."

Amy stared at him, tears rising in her eyes. "You don't like me anymore," she said. "Mom warned me this might happen. You don't like me just because of... what I am."

"It's not about liking or not liking," my father said. "We're not of the same... kind. People like you shouldn't associate with humans."

Amy blinked away some tears as she replied. "Even if we're your family?"

My father ignored her comment and turned to me. "Let me understand this situation," he said. "You defiled your body at a young age, then married a man under false pretenses. Then you left that man, who, admittedly, was an unpleasant fellow, but at least was human. Now you've taken up with this... this... creature here." He gestured toward Adrian, who had come up behind Amy and put a comforting hand on her shoulder. "A creature with whom you now live, sharing meals and god-knows-what else." He looked at my belly. "Your bed, I suppose," he added. He sighed, and before I could think of anything to say in reply, he went on, saying, "And now little Violet is being exposed to this evil before she is old enough to know right from wrong."

I shook my head, worried for a moment that I'd be too angry to speak clearly. Luckily, the words spilled out once he'd said Violet's name. "You wondered how Violet had the guts to take karate?" I said. "It was because she was empowered by how loved and supported she was at home. Adrian's taken her into his heart as if she were his own. And Amy's bloomed, too. They both have. Adrian and Amy sit and talk and laugh as if they're old friends. He just... makes them both so _happy_."

"I keep trying to tell you that there's more to raising children than just making them happy," my father said.

"Well, it's a damn good start," I said, and my father looked up at the sound of the curse word, his expression indignant. I ignored that and went on. "And you know something else? Adrian makes _me_ happier, too. He makes me laugh. He makes every day fun. He accepts me exactly as I am, but still encourages me to try new things, and to be my best. He's... he's my best friend, Dad. I know he's a Moroi, but it doesn't matter. Don't you want your daughter to be happy?"

"I'd rather you be faithful to your duties," my dad said.

"I was faithful to my duties for years," I said. "Just like Mom was."

There was a very long pause after that. Amy and Adrian settled down on another bench, a short distance away, and Violet followed after them. Amy's eyes were still bright with tears, but the set of her jaw told me she was determined to hold herself together. Her determination inspired me to keep going. Dad and I were going to have it out, once and for all.

"I know you don't like Moroi," I said. "I know that our whole lives were devoted to keeping Moroi and humans apart. But maybe we were wrong, Dad. Adrian's been such a blessing to us. Like I told you, we've made a home together, a _real_ one. He's already more of a father to the girls than Rick ever was."

I realized almost immediately that I had said the wrong thing. My dad bristled. "I see," he said. "Violet was missing a father. She needed a male presence in her life, and she grasped onto Adrian. I can correct this. She should come live with me."

"No way, Dad," I said. "She's happy with me and Adrian and Amy."

"A home with a Moroi, a... a dhampir... and a traitor to the human race?" my father said, incredulously. "I hardly think that's a safe environment."

"A Moroi who's her adopted father, a dhampir who's her blood sister, and a so-called traitor who is her mother who loves her dearly," I said.

Adrian stood up. "I'm sorry, sir, but there's no way we'll let you take Violet from us," he said.

"Yeah," Amy said, getting to her feet. "No more Mrs. Nice Amy. You don't like me anymore? Fine. I don't like you either. I'm not letting you take my sister." Violet stood up, as well, and nodded her approval of Amy's words.

My dad's face was impassive, but I noticed that he was studiously avoiding the sight of Amy.

"Dad," I said, softly. "Why don't you take a good look at Amy? Really look at her? She's the same little girl you loved so much just a few short minutes ago. She hasn't changed in the slightest."

"I don't need to look at her," he said. "It's humans that I owe my loyalty to. Violet is my concern now. You're too far gone, Sydney."

"Gee, thanks," I said. I turned to Adrian and the girls. "Well, this was a wash," I said. "Should we go back to the car?"

"Sydney?" Adrian said, gesturing behind me. I turned to see my dad reaching into his hip bag and pulling out another powder, something in a strange shade of red that I didn't recognize.

"What is that, Dad?" I asked, as he shook it into his hand and released it into the wind. "Whatever it is, don't do that here. Don't desecrate Mom's grave with alchemy. Don't -"

But my father had released the powder from his hands. Impossibly, the finely ground substance fell to the ground the same way that rocks would, setting off small, bright red sparks. I had never seen this substance before, but I recognized it as alchemist technology designed to immobilize all magical creatures. It had apparently affected me, too, either because of the Moroi magic in my ring, or because of the dhampir baby in my belly, I wasn't sure. Regardless, I felt my body seize up. I tried to speak, tried to move in any way, but could not. It took effort even to move my eyes, but I managed to look around, and I saw that Amy and Adrian were frozen in place, just as I was. Even the baby inside me had stopped kicking. Only Violet was left unaffected, and she looked around at us, fear showing in her little face. _Violet_, I thought desperately. _Run away. Just run. We'll find you later. Just run..._

My father smiled a strange smile that didn't reach his eyes. "Come here, Violet," he said, opening his arms. "Let's you and me go home to my house. Your Aunt Zoe is there, and your Aunt Carly is coming over soon, too. We can play games and have treats and get ready for Thanksgiving."

"Mr. Adrian?" Violet said, her voice sounding very small. She pulled at his hand, and his arm moved, swinging freely, like a pendulum that someone had set in motion, until it came to rest again by his side. "Mommy?" Violet called. "Mr. Adrian? Amy? Why aren't you guys moving?"

"Don't worry," my dad said. "They're fine. They're just resting a minute so that you and I can talk. Let's go to my car. We can go to McDonald's on the way home. Do you like McDonald's?"

"No," Violet said, which I knew was a lie. "I hate it. Mommy? Wake up, please. Please?" She had begun to cry a little.

My father was advancing on her, that same fake smile on his face. "Don't worry, honey," he said. "Let's just go to my house. We can talk there. I'll explain everything."

"I don't want to talk to you," Violet said. "I'm going to stay here to protect Mommy and Adrian and Amy until they wake up."

"They'll be fine," Dad said. He looked at me curiously, and I got the distinct impression that he hadn't expected the substance to affect me. I wondered how long it would be until it wore off, and who would be freed soonest.

"But Amy's bleeding," Violet said, pointing to Amy's leg. Sure enough, a small trickle of blood was oozing from the mosquito bite she'd been scratching at before. "See?" Violet said. "She needs a band-aid."

"She'll be fine," my father said, not looking. "Don't worry. She's not like us. She doesn't feel things like you and I do."

"I know that," Violet said. "She feels things better than we do. She hears and sees and smells things, better, too." A slight smile curled her lip. "But I don't know if she remembers things better."

"I think you've gotten confused," my dad said.

"No, I didn't," Violet said. "I'm smart. My mom and dad told me that."

"Listen," Dad said. "Of course you're smart. All I meant was, your mom lied to you a little. She didn't tell you the truth about this... this... Adrian."

"Yes she did," Violet said. "She told me he was a vampire." She shrugged. "Some people are white, some people are black, some people are from far away, and some people are vampires. It's no big deal. God loves us all anyway." She smiled.

Dad sighed. "God loves his children," he said. "That means humans, honey. Anyway, let's not argue. You can live at my house now, ok? We'll have lots of fun, and I'll take good care of you."

"No," Violet said. She clutched at Adrian's side. "I won't ever live at your house. If you take me to your house, I won't ever ever talk to you. I won't ever hug you or kiss you or give you presents or play games with you. I'll just hate you and hate you and hate you and _hate_ you forever for taking me away from my Mommy and sister and Adrian-Daddy."

"Violet," my dad said, trying to sound calm and reasonable. He was still advancing on her, and while she clutched more tightly at Adrian, she didn't back up. "You don't know what you're saying," he said. "These people have lied to you."

"I know exactly what I'm saying," she said, stamping her foot. "I'm not stupid. I'm smart and I know things. And I know that I hate _you_!"

"That's enough," my father said, and reached for her. She ducked away, and he began chasing her, the two of them ducking and weaving past graves. Violet was more nimble, but my father was a lot taller, with longer legs, and kept up with her. She didn't seem to want to get too far from me and Adrian, either, and she circled around us, calling to us, begging us to wake up. Finally, my father cornered her against a large mausoleum, and he grabbed her and put her over his shoulder, like a fireman rescuing someone from a fire - someone who preferred the fire to the rescue.

She continued to shout and struggle, pounding him on the back with her little fists. As she kicked and struggled, Elephanty seemed to dance, his floppy arms and legs dangling from her belt-loop. "I know a lot of things!" she repeated. "I know that you're a bad, mean man with a heart like the Grinch, and a face like him too. I hate you!"

"Be quiet now," my father said, his patience gone. He began heading toward his car. He was going to take her somewhere. Probably just his house – but what was he going to do there? Would he do something to her memories?

I put all my energy into movement. _God_, I thought._ Please. This can't be your will. _

"We _all_ hate you," Violet shouted. "I think that maybe _everyone_ hates you."

"Fine, fine," Dad said, calmly.

I moved one pinky. Just a little.

"Because you're a bad, mean, bad man!" Violet shouted, and then hit him in the back of the neck with her elbow. My father let out a surprised shout, and fell forward a little. Violet hit him again, and he lost his grip on her and she fell to the ground. She rolled as she fell, using moves she'd learned in karate class, but she nonetheless skinned one of her knees, and scraped her right cheek and left forearm badly. My father reached for her – and grabbed hold of Elephanty's leg, instead. He pulled while Violet moved forward. There was a ripping sound, and then Violet was standing a short distance from my father, and my father was holding a soft, purplish-gray stuffed elephant leg in his hand.

Violet stared at her injured stuffed animal, speechless with emotion. She seemed not to notice her injuries, so complete was her concern for her elephant. Finally, she looked at my father, her eyes glittering with tears and rage, and spoke in a near-whisper that nonetheless carried across the windy graveyard.

"I bet even _Grandma_ hates you," Violet said. A small trickle of blood made its way down her right cheek. "She's thinking that _you _are the one who... who... desecrates things. She's looking at you from Heaven and saying, 'I'm glad I'm up here and not down there with that bad, bad man.' "

I watched my father recoil at her words as if he'd been punched hard in the stomach. He sank down heavily onto my mother's grave, then sat there motionless.

"And that's all I have to say to you," Violet said. She made a zipping motion over her lips, as if she were zipping them shut, and turned her back on him.

"You're bleeding," he said to her, softly. "Come here, let me put something on the scrapes."

Violet ignored him and began walking back over towards us. She cradled Elephanty in her arms and began singing to him in a scratchy, tearful voice. "Don't worry, little baby," she sang, making up the tune as she went along. "I love you very much. You're a good elephant. A real soldier. I'm so proud of you."

I thought my father would make another move to grab her any moment, but he didn't. He just stared down at the piece of fabric and stuffing in his hand.

After a moment, the spell on Amy wore off enough for Amy to be able to take a few difficult steps toward my father. I wanted to warn her not to approach him, but he seemed curiously deflated and allowed her to approach him. "What is _wrong_ with you, Grampa?" Amy said, in a choked voice. "Why did you do that?"

"I didn't mean to," he said. He sounded more confused than angry.

Amy walked slowly over to him and took the leg from his unresisting hand. Then she brought it over to Violet, saying, "Don't worry, Vy-Vy. We can sew it back on. And Dad will fix your scrapes as soon as he wakes up." She and I both glanced at Adrian, who was still completely motionless.

"See, Elephanty?" Violet said, still seemingly unaware of her scrapes. "You'll be good as new. We'll fix you. I know it hurts right now, but don't worry. We'll make it better."

Inside of me, the baby kicked, twice, very softly. And I took one step forward.

"Come here, girls," I said, in a voice that sounded like I hadn't spoken in years. They both came over to me, Violet running, Amy at a slow, painful seeming walk. I put my arms around both of them and held them to me, rocking them a little. I took a tissue from my pocket and gave it to Violet to hold to the scrape on her forehead, and Amy was given the task of holding onto Elephanty (and Elephanty's leg). The whole time, my father didn't move from where he was seated on my mother's grave.

"This sucks," Adrian said then, through clenched jaws. "What was that shit?"

"Magic immobilizer," I said. "I guess it hit you hardest because you're the most magic one here."

"Sure," Adrian said, and began moving slowly toward us, the substance still affecting him greatly. The girls ran to give him a hug, and he embraced them as well, and then the four of us came together for a brief group hug. When we separated, we all looked over at my father, who was still sitting on my mother's grave, staring into space. Then Adrian began healing Violet's scrapes, one at a time. My father glanced over once then looked away again quickly, as if he had seen something disgusting. Once Adrian was done, he gave Violet a kiss on the forehead, and Amy gave Elephanty back to her and gave her a hug.

"Sir?" Adrian said, addressing my father. My father turned his head slightly to look at him. Adrian began to speak, his tone intense but respectful. "I know that a relationship like mine and Sydney's is a little unusual, but I assure you, I love your daughter with all my heart. You probably don't have the best opinion of people like me but..."

"_People_," my father scoffed, making a mockery of the word.

"Well, yes," Adrian. "Um. Anyway. I know what you probably think about me but really, sir, I'd never do anything to hurt Sydney, ever. And the same with Violet and Amy. They're the best thing that ever happened to me and all I want to do for the rest of my life is help take care of them and make them happy. Like just now. I know you don't approve of magic, but look at Violet. She's good as new. That cut on her head might have needed stitches. She could have had a scar there for life. But it was my pleasure to do something to help her, to heal her injuries." I thought it was very diplomatic of Adrian not to point out that the injury he had just healed was one that my father had caused. "Please, sir," Adrian went on. "Just think about it. Maybe reconsider. Like I said, I love these ladies so much and just want to take care of them."

"Take care of them?" my father spat. "You hurt them just by being near them. You hurt them by sharing their lives. You..." He trailed off suddenly, the animation leaving his face. "But it's pointless to argue. I'm an old man now. Past my point of usefulness. Just go. Leave me in peace. Leave me here with my wife."

"Ok," Adrian said. "We'll go." He looked at me. "Ready, Sydney?"

I paused. "Adrian, will you take the girls over there for a minute?" I gestured to an area near a tree, where another bench was situated. "I need to talk to my dad for a minute."

"Are you sure that's an ok idea?" he asked. "Is it... safe?"

"I think so," I said. "Don't go too far, I guess."

"Ok," he said, softly. "Just wave your arms or something if you need me. I'll be watching." Then he said to the girls, "Come on, let's let your Mom talk to him for a minute." He began gently guiding them toward the bench, but Amy stopped and turned back again almost immediately.

"Wait," she said. She looked at my father. "Do you want the star projector back?" she asked. "I think we still have the box. You can bring it back to the store."

"That's not necessary," my father said.

"And Big Bear," she said. "You can have him back, too. Give him to some other kids, some human ones, I don't know. Whatever. Actually, when I get home, I'm going to find every present you ever gave me and I'm going to mail them back to you. Because I don't want them."

"Really, you don't have to," my father said.

"You don't understand," Amy said. "I want to." She sniffed once, rubbed her eyes quickly, and went on. "You said you loved me, but you changed your mind when you found out I was a dhampir. Who _does_ that? That's not real love. Love is supposed to be forever. You're just... an idiot. _Good-bye_." She spoke the last two syllables with an almost gleeful anger, then turned on her heel and marched away, Adrian and Violet following her. My father didn't even look at her once.

I waited for them to get a short distance away. Once they were out of earshot, I sat down next to my father, who was still basically motionless. "Hi, Dad," I said. When he didn't reply, I said, in a conversational tone, "Wow, that Amy really knows how to launch an attack, doesn't she? Not to mention Violet!" But my father still was silent. I waited a minute or two, and then I spoke up again. "Listen, Dad. I need to know what you're going to do next."

"What I'm going to _do_?" Dad said. "Same thing I always do. When I'm done visiting your mother, I'm going to go home again."

"No, I mean... about us," I said. "It's time to lay our cards out on the table. Are you going to try to send me to reeducation?"

Dad looked up sharply. Reeducation wasn't really discussed in alchemists families. Bringing it up so directly to my father felt as awkward as cursing in front of him, or talking about sex with him. But I had to know what he was going to do next.

He shook his head. "I'm not going to do _that_," he said. "That process is expensive and time-consuming. It's really reserved for active members of the service. Besides, if I alerted the alchemists to the depth of your betrayal, that would be it for our family. Zoe would probably be forced to retire. They might even send _me_ to one of those... facilities... for having failed you so completely." He sighed.

"You didn't fail me," I said. "Well, not in the way that you think." My father's child-raising techniques had failed – but that failure hadn't led to Adrian. It had led to Rick, and the ten years of suffering I'd gone through.

"Obviously, I did," Dad said. "Getting pregnant by a Moroi, without even the benefit of marriage..."

"As it happens," I said, "Adrian and I _are_ married. We got married last spring." After I said it, I wondered if it had been wise to tell him that – but I figured I might as well go all in.

The fact that I was married shocked my father. "You remarried without my knowledge or consent?" he sputtered.

"I wasn't aware that adult women living in the 21st century were required to ask their fathers' permission to get remarried," I remarked. "Are there any other rules from the Middle Ages still in effect that you'd like to bring to my attention?"

"Can you keep that smart lip under control?" he replied, then fell silent again.

For a minute, we just listened to the wind through the trees. Then I spoke up.

"Are you going to try to take Violet away from us again?" I asked. "Because you should know that I won't let that happen, Dad. I will fight to the last breath to keep her and Amy with me."

"I don't doubt that," he said, sighing again. "I don't know what to tell you, Sydney. If you're so far gone that you can't see that Violet would be better off being raised among humans, then there's no hope for you."

"Good to know," I said.

"But I won't try to take her from you again," Dad went on. "I see now it was a mistake to try. The child clearly despises me now, and there's nothing that can be done about that. I don't think I could handle having another female in the house who hates me just for trying to do what's best for her."

That was an interesting view on the situation, but I just let it go. "Thanks, Dad. It's good to know."

"And tell her... tell her I'm sorry I hurt her, and that I'm sorry I tore her toy. I see that it upset her."

"Yes," I said. "It did. I'll tell her you said sorry, but for her sake, not yours."

"That's fine," he said.

I paused, waiting for him to continue, and when he didn't, I said, "And Amy? Anything you want me to tell her?"

"No," he said, heavily. "It's not my place. We're not of the same worlds."

"Do you honestly hate her that much, just because she's a dhampir?" I asked, trying not to scream the words into his ear.

"I don't hate her," he said. "How could I hate her? But I can't love her anymore. It's not up to me. She's a dhampir, Sydney. And you're a traitor to our race. The war is over, and I've lost. And I... I have nothing more to say to either of you. So please just leave me in peace."

"Ok," I said. I waited. "I um, I wish that things were different."

He didn't respond. I waited a moment, and then I got up, slowly, from the grave.

"Wait," he said.

"Hmm?"

"What is it?" he asked, gesturing toward my belly.

"Why do you care?" I asked.

"Just wondering," he said, softly.

I paused, then said, "It's another girl." I had told the doctor that we wanted it to be a surprise, but I knew, anyway, the way I had known with Amy and Violet.

"So you'll have three girls," he mused. "Just like your mother."

"In some ways, yes, I guess my life is a little like hers," I said. "In other ways, thankfully, it's quite different."

I waited for his response, but when I got none, I walked away, up the slight hill, to where my family was waiting for me. I was thinking about where I might find a sewing needle and some purplish-gray thread.


	38. Reattachment

_Fixed up/filled out/rewritten on 8/14._

**Chapter 38: Reattachment**

After we left the cemetery, Adrian drove, with Violet sitting in the front seat next to him, holding Elephanty in her lap. Amy sat in the back with me, her head on my shoulder in a rare show of vulnerability. I stroked her hair without comment.

After we'd driven for a few minutes, Adrian pulled the car over and used his phone for a few minutes, muttering something about "fixing things." Then he entered an address into the GPS and began to drive. Pretty soon he reached the destination - a small crafting supplies shop. Elephanty's severed leg in hand, he ran inside while the rest of us waited in the car. The store was closed for the day, but there was still someone inside, cleaning up, and Adrian banged on the door until she let him in. I thought – but wasn't sure – that he might have waved some money at her. A few moments later, he re-emerged holding a small plastic bag and smiling.

"They had a near perfect match for Elephanty's coloring," Adrian said, as he got back into the car. "I got some sewing needles, too. Did I do good, Miss Purple?" He handed the bag over to Violet with an air of triumph.

She rummaged inside until she found the spool of thread, which she held up to Elephanty's leg, checking for a match. "He thinks it is just the right shade," she said, and sniffled.

"Oh, good," Adrian said, and handed her a tissue from pack we'd put in the little box between the driver and passenger seats. She took it without comment.

"I'll sew him up as soon as we get home," I said, reaching up from the back seat to pat her arm.

"Good," Violet said. She sniffled again, then wiped her nose with the tissue. "I still can't believe Grampa tried to kidnap us."

For a moment, I was confused, and then I realized that by 'us' Violet meant herself and her elephant. "He'll never try that again," I said, hoping I was right. "When I talked to him, he said to tell you he's sorry for hurting you and Elephanty."

Violet let out a little "Hmmmph," but otherwise didn't reply. Amy let out a little "hmmph" of her own, then put her head back on my shoulder. Violet began humming softly to her damaged toy, as if comforting a sick baby. Other than her humming, the car was quiet for the rest of the drive back to the hotel.

When we arrived, we went straight to the room we were using as a living room, and I put on an old Disney movie while Adrian called for a pizza to be delivered. The girls sat on one of the beds and watched the movie, cuddled up together when they weren't eating their pizza. I scarfed down a slice myself, then pulled a chart close to the bed and set to the task of carefully reattaching Elephanty's leg. Adrian, meanwhile, was making a few phone calls between bites of pizza, trying to arrange for us to travel home in the morning.

"Can I see?" Violet asked, during a slow part of the movie. She peered at my handiwork. "It looks good," she said, finally. "You can hardly see the stiches. And Elephanty says to tell you it doesn't hurt because he's a stuffed animal, not a real elephant."

"That's good to know," I said. "I wouldn't want to hurt him."

"You won't," she said. She watched again for another few moments, then asked, "Do you think he'll be just the same like before when you're done?"

"I don't know," I said. "I hope so."

"Me too," she said, then went back to watching the movie, and I went back to my difficult task. As much as possible, I really wanted Elephanty to look the same as he always had, but the truth was that he wouldn't ever be exactly the same. That's the way life is, sometimes, I thought.

When the movie was over, I agreed to let the girls watch another one. I was almost done with Elephanty, and was ready to lie down and relax myself. While they were running through the options in our media player, I asked Adrian whether he'd had any luck in arranging a trip back to Philly. He was sitting at the table, his cheek propped up on his fist.

"No one wants to take us," he sighed. "I can't find a pilot willing to take the trip on Thanksgiving itself. I really think we'll have to just spend Thanksgiving in Utah." He got up and stretched, his long arms almost touching the ceiling.

"Really?" Amy said, overhearing this. "That sucks."

"Language, honey," I said. "But yeah, it's not ideal."

"It'll be ok," Adrian said, as he climbed into the big bed with the girls. "We'll be together, and that's enough to be thankful for, right?"

The girls offered reluctant agreement to that.

"And here's something else to be happy about," I said, handing Elephanty back to Violet.

"He's all better!" she exclaimed. "You can hardly see where the stitches are." She jiggled him around, making him dance happily, and hummed a little marching tune.

"Is he feeling ok, on the inside?" I asked her, carefully. "Is he scared or sad because of what Grampa did?"

Violet paused to consider that. "No," she said. "Not really. He thinks that probably Grampa won't do that again. And that if he does, it'll be ok, because you still have more of that gray thread."

"What about _you_, Violet?" I asked her. I was carefully climbing into the king sized bed so that the four of us could watch the movie together.

"I feel the same like Elephanty," Violet said. "He and I agree."

"What do _you_ think, Amy?" I asked, turning to my older daughter. "Are you ok?"

"I'm fine," Amy said. "Grampa is just an old mean man. I can't believe I used to like him." Her voice buckled just a little on the words, and her eyes glittered, but then she took a deep breath and said, "What about you, Mom? Are you ok?"

"I'm fine as long as you three are with me," I said. "That's all I need."

Adrian gave me a kiss on the cheek, but Amy laughed. "You are both so cheesy," she said, gesturing to me and Adrian.

"I thought you liked cheese," I said, tickling her.

She giggled. "Only on pizza!" she said.

"Anyway, you meant you need us _four_," Violet said. "Before you said you'll be ok if you have us three, but there's _four_ of us." She gestured to my belly.

"You _four_," I corrected, resting my hands on my belly. As if she'd heard me, the baby kicked, just once, softly.

"Come on," Amy said. "Let's watch the movie!"

* * *

We spent a cozy night in, watching movies and eating microwave popcorn. We went to bed early, all of us sleeping in the room we had planned to use as a living room - Adrian and I in one bed and the girls in the other. In the morning, once we'd showered and dressed, we went out to an IHOP for breakfast, each of us choosing meals so full of sugar, fat, and cholesterol that I was half convinced the Surgeon General would show up any minute to take our plates away. The windows of the restaurant were decorated with cardboard cutouts of turkeys and the waitress made gobbling sounds whenever she refilled our coffee mugs, which I found slightly annoying. I also found it annoying that she was flirting a little with Adrian right in front of me, but that was kind of to be expected. I noticed that a few people at the IHOP were staring at us, and I thought that I recognized a few people that I'd known growing up. But no one approached us, and with Adrian wearing his disguise ring, I felt that we were reasonably safe.

When we were done with our meals, we returned to the hotel to relax for a bit and plan our day. We decided that once we'd finally digested the enormous breakfast we'd had, we'd go out to the local mall for some early Christmas shopping, just for something to do. While the girls read their books in their room, Adrian and I relaxed a little in ours, cuddled up together in the bed and chatting. We were remembering the first time he'd met the girls, which was when we had been out doing Christmas shopping. As we talked, he began massaging my back, which felt wonderful. Our conversation began to fade, replaced by a more physical connection. Pregnant or no, I still had trouble keeping my hands off of Adrian, and he seemed to feel the same about me as he ever had. His presence, his touch, his scent... It was all making me wonder if it'd be worth it to risk early labor by having sex. After all, I'd have to go into labor at some point... why not right now? I was considering the pros and cons in my head when my cell phone rang. Annoyed, I sat up to grab it from the nightstand.

"Don't get it," Adrian said. He sounded sleepy and content. "They'll call back."

I checked the caller ID. "I have to get it," I said, and touched the button to begin the call. "Hi, Zoe," I said, cautiously. Adrian looked up at me, startled.

"Hey, Syd," Zoe said, cheerfully. "Happy Thanksgiving!"

"Happy Thanksgiving," I repeated, automatically.

"So, what time are you coming over today?"

"What?" I said, confused. "You don't know?"

"Don't know what?" she asked, sounding exasperated. "You're not _not_ coming now, are you? We had a deal!"

"I guess you haven't talked to Dad," I said. Adrian sat up and got closer to me, putting one arm around me.

"How could I talk to Dad?" Zoe said. "He's locked himself up in the garage! That's why I was calling – to see if you could come over a little earlier. I have no idea what is going on with him."

"I guess I might have some insight into what's going on," I said, and then, as succinctly as I could, I explained what had happened the day before at the cemetery. I managed not to mention anything about being pregnant or about Amy's paternity, though I knew it was only a matter of time that Zoe found all that out, too. While I was speaking, Adrian got up and began pacing the room. I could picture the cigarette he wished he was holding.

When I was done with the story, Zoe sighed gustily and said, "Well, what a mess. No wonder Dad's so upset."

"Dad's upset?" I said. "What about _me_? He tried to kidnap one of my daughters!"

"Well, yeah, that wasn't cool, but he was probably just going to take her to his house. He wasn't going to ship her off to Siberia or something."

"No," I said. "He already used that trick on me."

"Come on," Zoe said. "That was an alchemist assignment. Anyway, what were you thinking, taking Adrian with you to Utah?"

"He didn't want to be away from the girls," I said. "They'd miss him. And I told you, I'm um, not feeling so well. He wanted to be around in case I got sicker."

"Whatever," Zoe said, sounding annoyed. "It is what it is. So, what are you going to do now?"

"I don't know... Go home, I guess," I said. "Dad promised he wasn't going to send me to reeducation, or take the girls away or anything..."

"No, I mean, what are you going to do about _Dad_?" Zoe said. "He's a mess."

"_He's_ a mess?" I repeated. "What the heck, Zoe? Why are you so much more worried about him than about me?"

"Well, at least you're communicating with the outside world," Zoe said. "Dad won't even come out of the garage."

"What is he doing in there?" I asked.

I could almost see Zoe shrugging. "Got me," she said. "He probably turned it into a big alchemist lab. At least, that's my best guess, since he's so secretive."

"You've never gone in there?" I asked.

"No one has," Zoe said. "Not since Mom... left us. He hangs out in there a lot, when he's not at the cemetery. He went in there last night when he got back from the cemetery, and only came in to use the bathroom and have a bite to eat. I think he might have slept out there. Either that, or he got up really early and went back out there before I even woke up. And he won't come out."

"Well, did you try... knocking?"

"No, Sydney," Zoe said, sarcastically. "What a brilliant idea! I should go try that!"

"Ok, ok," I said. "So you knocked on the door and what did he do?"

"Just said he was busy and that he'd talk to me later. That's all he'd say. Come on, Sydney. He's obviously upset about what happened. You should go over and apologize or something."

"Apologize?" I said, incredulously. "To him? He's the one who should be apologizing to me!"

"Yeah, but like... still."

"Can't you get Carly to go talk to him?" I said. "Maybe that would help."

"Carly's over at her friend's house," Zoe said.

"What friend?" I asked, innocently.

"She's got this friend, Joanne I think her name is. And Joanne apparently has this huge family, tons of aunts and uncles and cousins and everything. So they're all coming over to Joanne's house, and Carly offered to help her clean up and start the turkey, stuff like that." Zoe laughed. "What do you want to bet that Joanne has a hot brother or something? That'd be so like Carly, to do something like that, buddy up to a girl just to get closer to her brother."

"Hmm," I said, trying to keep my tone neutral. Adrian had sat down on at the desk, and was clearly thinking hard. "Well," I said, "Carly will come over sooner or later, and then you two can work on Dad. Keep me out of it."

"But it has to be _you_, Sydney," Zoe said. "You're the one he's upset about. He's barely left the garage now for like, 24 hours. Come on, Syd."

"No," I said. "I really -" And then I stopped, suddenly hit with a vivid image of my dad hard at work on some sort of weird, nefarious alchemist technology. Maybe he was making something to make Violet lose her memories, or something to make me stop loving Adrian. The idea was unsupportable. Whatever my father was doing, I wanted to know about it now, so that Adrian and I could come up with a plan to counteract it. "Well, on second thought, I guess I _could_ go over there and check on him," I said, carefully. Adrian stared at me, and I held up one finger, the universal symbol for "wait just a minute and I'll explain!"

"Will you really come over?" Zoe said, sounding surprised. "Really? Oh, wow. Please do. I'm so worried about him."

"I guess I can at least try," I said, feeling slightly guilty. Zoe was worried for our father's well-being, while I was sort of plotting against him.

"Thanks, Sydney," Zoe said. "That'd be really great of you. And you know, it'll give us a chance to chat for a minute, too. I have to go out and get some things for dinner before the stores close but I have a minute to say hi."

"You don't have to," I said, a little too quickly. "You can go to the store now..."

"No, no, I'll wait for you to come over before I go," she said. "I'll feel better knowing someone is here with Dad. The way he's been acting lately, I don't know. I just want someone here."

"Ok," I said, resigned. "I'll come over as soon as I can. I just need to take care of a few things first."

"Great," Zoe said. "See you soon."

We said our goodbyes and hung up, and then I looked over at Adrian. I knew he'd overheard the whole conversation, so I didn't need to summarize it. I just said, "So, what's your take on all this?"

"I don't get Zoe's angle," he said. He stood up and began pacing again. "She's acting really weird. First she says your marriage is an abomination, then she seems not to really care so much. I don't get it."

"Me either, to be honest," I said.

"And why did you agree to go? I figure you have a good reason, but I can't figure out what it is."

"I need to know what Dad's doing in that garage," I said. "He might be putting together some sort of brain-washing apparatus for Violet, or for me. I won't be able to relax until I know for sure."

"But if you go over there, he might use whatever it is on you," he said. "He might do god-knows-what to you. Or to our baby..."

I thought about that. "True," I said. "But if I get over there before he's done making whatever he's making, maybe I can do something about it."

"I don't like it," Adrian said. "I don't want you to go alone."

"But he won't let me in if you're there."

"Well, I could just wait outside and monitor your aura. Or listen for you. I'd be able to hear your shouting, even if you're inside the garage and I'm out in the car."

"But we can't leave the girls alone," I said. "And I don't want them to come with us, either. It doesn't seem like a good idea to have the three of you in the car, especially if you _do_ have to run in to help me."

He considered that for a few moments. "You know what we could do?" he said, slowly, as he sat back down on the bed next to me.

"What?"

"We could bring the girls over to Joanne's house," he said. "They already know her and like her, and if the place is as crowded as Zoe said, then there'll be safety in numbers. I mean, even the alchemists wouldn't abduct a little girl from a whole houseful of civilians, would they?"

I ran my fingers through my hair, thinking. "You know," I said. "It could work."

"Carly's over there right now, right?" Adrian said. "You can call her and figure it out with her and Joanne."

"You're brilliant," I said, and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"Sage thinks I'm brilliant," he said, with a grin.

I hit him lightly on the arm. Then I pulled up Carly's number on my phone and hit 'send.'

"Sydney!" Carly said, answering her phone. There were a lot of noises in the background, and I pictured a house full of adults, children, and elderly people, all talking and laughing, eating baby carrots and cheese and crackers. "Happy Thanksgiving! Omigod, today's the day! I can't wait to see you and the girls but I'm so nervous about this ring thing. Just in case, I'm going to stand, like, right in front of you, as much as possible, ok?" She laughed. "Can't hurt, right?"

"It's a nice thought, but the plan's off," I said, and briefly explained what was going on.

"Oh, shit," Carly said. "Oh, sorry, Mary Grace..." There was a brief comment in the background, and then Carly laughed. "Thanks, Mary Grace," she said, and then said to me, "Sorry, Sydney. I just totally cursed in front of Joanne's little cousin. Anyway, omigod, this whole thing sucks. I really thought the plan would work!"

"Me too," I said.

"Like, I felt _so_ bad about Zoe figuring things out, like it was my fault. I didn't know the alchemists had a backup queue..."

"It wasn't your fault, Carly," I said, as kindly as I could. We'd already talked about this at length.

"I know, I know, but I still feel bad. But anyway, I guess I should ask her, but like, of course me and Joanne can look after the girls. They'll fit right in. Like, Joanne has so many little cousins, or first-cousins-once-removed, whatever they're called, I don't understand... . The girls will just be two more in a crowded house! And I'm sure Joanne would love to see them again. She thinks they're great kids. Wait, hold on, let me ask her." She took the phone away from her mouth, and I heard her call, "Joanne?" There was a muffled conversation in the background, punctuated by happy squeals. Then Carly came back on the phone.

"Joanne says she'd love them to come over! She says hi to everyone and happy Thanksgiving, too."

"Tell her happy Thanksgiving," I said.

"From me too," Adrian interjected, and I repeated his words into the phone. Carly laughed.

"So," I said, cautiously. "I gather that Zoe still doesn't know about you and Joanne. She referred to Joanne as your 'friend'."

"Yeah," Carly said, sadly. "I don't know. Maybe I should tell her. But I feel like she would freak out."

"Maybe you should give her a chance," I said.

"Maybe," Carly said. "I'll think about it."

We talked a little bit more, arranging the details and making sure that we both had all the relevant cell phone numbers. Then we exchanged goodbyes and hung up.

"So," Adrian said. "We're on?"

"We're on," I said.

Adrian took my hand and squeezed it, gently. I leaned my head on his shoulder for a moment. Then we set about putting our plan into action.

* * *

On the trip from Joanne's house to my dad's house, Adrian and I were quiet, both of us thinking about the task that lay before me. I drove, feeling as though I could find my way to my old house with my eyes closed. About a mile from the house, we pulled over for a minute, and Adrian got into the back seat and pulled a blanket over himself, both for cover and for warmth. Then I drove the last block to the old house and pulled into the driveway.

"Good luck," Adrian said, peeking at me from under the blanket.

"Love you," I said, unbuckling my seat-belt.

"Love you more," he said. "Now go do your thing."

"I plan to," I said, then pulled on my coat and got out of the car.

I waddled my way down the path to the front door. Zoe was waiting for me on the front porch, a quilt wrapped around her as protection from the cold. She got to her feet when she saw me, surprise showing clearly on her face. I hadn't bothered with the disguise ring - what would be the point, if Dad knew the truth already? I steeled myself for Zoe's censure.

"Why the heck didn't you tell me you were pregnant, you moron?" she said, by way of greeting.

"Hi, Zoe," I said, dryly. "Nice to see you, too."

"_Hiiii_," she said, irritably. "Seriously, what the heck, Sydney? I mean, you _are_ pregnant, right?" She stared at my belly.

"Yes, I am," I said. "I'm due next week."

"Why didn't you _tell_ me?" she whined.

"Because you made me promise not to get pregnant with Adrian," I said. "I didn't think you'd take it too well when you found that I already had. Can I come inside? It's freezing out here."

"Fine, whatever," Zoe said, and opened the door.

We walked in and immediately I was hit with the familiar smell of the house – something indefinable, but as familiar as a birthmark. We were in the room we usually called the laundry room, a small utility space with the washer and dryer and a space to hang up coats and leave damp and muddy boots. Zoe dropped the quilt in a pile on the floor, apparently unconcerned for its welfare. Then she reached for my coat and hung it on a hook for me, as Dad had taught us to do for guests. She was talking the whole time in a high-paced monolog.

"I mean, Sydney, I'm not thrilled about having a dhampir for a niece or nephew," she said. "But like, if you're already nearly nine months pregnant, what could you do about it? You should have told me right away. In fact, you should have told me that you were getting married. Why'd you ask Carly to cover it up? Maybe if you had just come to me and told me the truth instead of going behind my back to Carly, it would have been different. I mean, like, what does she even know about it? She never even met Adrian. Why is she so special?" She finally stopped speaking and looked at me accusingly.

"Sorry I didn't tell you," I said, slowly. "I just didn't think you'd deal with it very well. I mean, you are an active member of the alchemists..."

"I'm also your sister. Why didn't you just _tell_ me? You snuck all around, hiding things from me, telling Carly _everything_! And then you took your giant pregnant self and got on a plane, dosing the poor baby with god-knows-what kind of radiation... You shouldn't be flying if you're that far along, you know. It's not safe for the baby. What were you thinking?"

"Modern research suggests it's perfectly safe to fly during pregnancy," I said. "Anyway, would you really care if I miscarried? It's a dhampir we're talking about here."

Zoe stared at me, clearly outraged. "_God_, Sydney," she said. "Don't say that. I mean, that's an awful thing to say."

"But it's true, isn't it? You think dhampirs are an abomination in the eyes of God."

"I don't know," she said, looking down at my belly. She reached out a tentative hand, then let it fall to her side again. "I guess there's a difference between a theoretical baby and an actual one. And I wouldn't want anything to happen to him. Or her... . Is it a boy or a girl?"

"We wanted it to be a surprise," I said. "But I'm pretty certain it's a girl."

"A little girl," she said. "Going for the trifecta, huh?"

"Guess so," I said, with a smile.

"What are you going to name her?"

"We haven't decided yet. We wanted to see her face first."

She considered that, then nodded. "Well, I guess I won't push for 'Zoe' but I _will_ say that it's a good name. It's the Greek word for 'life.' And it's an underused name." She smiled.

"I knew what your name means," I said. "I speak Greek."

"Yeah, well, me too, and anyway, that's not the point. My point is, it's a good name."

"I know it is," I said. "I guess I'll think about it."

"Cool," she said. "So, what does Adrian think about the baby? I mean, is he... happy?"

"Why wouldn't he be?"

"Well, don't Moroi think of dhampirs as sort of... a lower class?"

"Adrian's over the moon about the baby," I said. "He's been reading all sorts of crazy books, things like how to make your own baby food, stuff like that. He's practically a certified midwife at this point. He also hand painted a cradle for the baby, using special paint he ordered online, paint that's supposed to be completely non-toxic."

Zoe looked surprised. "He really cares that much?"

"Why does that shock you? Because he's male, or because he's a Moroi?"

"I don't know," she said, sheepishly. "A little of both, I guess. I just sort of thought that Moroi didn't really... like... care. The way we did. You know? Like maybe babies didn't mean as much to them as they do to us."

"Maybe you should get to know him better before you make judgments like that," I said. "He's an amazing person. A lot of Moroi and dhampirs are really wonderful. The alchemists have it all wrong."

Zoe sighed. "We'll have to agree to disagree on that," she said. "Anyway, do you want to go talk to Dad?"

"Not really, but I'll go," I said. "Is he still in the garage?"

"Yeah," Zoe said. She gestured to the door off the side of the laundry room that led to the garage. "Good luck," she added. "I'm going to go to the grocery store before they close – we're almost out of butter. See you when I get back?"

"Maybe," I said.

"Well, just in case," she said, and surprised me by giving me a tight hug.

"Careful," I said, laughing a little. "You'll squish the baby."

"Oh!" she said, pulling back. "Did I hurt her?"

"She's fine," I said. "I was just kidding."

"Oh, ok," she said. She paused, then added, "You know, maybe we can figure all this out. I mean, I still think that what you did is pretty gross, but... I've been thinking about it. You're my sister, and family is family, you know, the ties that bind, blah blah blah. So …. _you_ know. I love you and stuff."

"Thanks," I said. "Back at you. And stuff. I guess we could talk about it sometime. I mean, we do have a lot of catching up to do."

"Exactly," she said. "It'd be nice to catch up. I don't even know what happened with you and Rick. All I know is all of a sudden you're divorced and then you're sneaking around getting married and it's just... It hurt my feelings, you know? That you didn't even talk to me about it?" She blinked away tears.

"I see that now," I said, feeling foolish. Why had I automatically assumed the worst of Zoe? I couldn't blame her for being angry with me.

"So don't do that anymore," Zoe said.

"I won't."

"And um, I'll try to be nicer about it, even if it's gross. I mean... It's sort of understandable. Adrian _is_ kind of cute."

"_Kind_ of?"

"Fine. Adrian is _really_ cute. Are you happy now?"

"Happier," I said.

"So, like, I can almost understand it. _Almost_."

I laughed. "Good to know," I said.

There was a long pause, and then Zoe grabbed a set of car keys from a small table by the door. "Well, anyway, I better go," she said, suddenly full of energy. "I don't have a lot of time. Bye for now!"

"Bye," I said, and she left, waving at me before she closed the door. Through the window, I watched her make her way to her little Toyota, get in, and speed away down the road.

Once she was gone, I waddled over to the garage door and examined it, then sighed. It was locked, of course, and what's more, the doorknob was coated with an oily substance that I recognized as the residue of a compound that alchemists used to prevent other alchemists from using the lock-destroying compound. I couldn't bust my way in, and I already knew that Dad was extremely unlikely to just _let_ me in. So I stood for a moment and thought. What options were left?

The idea of just giving up and going back to the car flitted through my mind, but I pushed it away firmly. I had come way too far to just give up now. I got my alchemist kit from my purse, then quickly made some lock-busting compound. Then I applied the compound, not to the door lock, but to the top and bottom hinges of the door itself. I waited a few moments and then watched with satisfaction as the hinges melted away. Then I pushed the door open and walked inside.

I looked around and could barely hold back a gasp of surprise. I didn't know exactly what I had been expecting, but it wasn't this.


End file.
